Freeing the Winter Lily
by Dianwei32
Summary: After a number of romantic overtures from visiting Princes, Anna suggest that Elsa look for love a little closer to home. Elsa considers it, but is the reward worth the risks?
1. Chapter 1

Freeing the Winter Lily

 **Chapter One**

Elsa finished reading the letter, then crumpled it up and sighed. _Another one,_ she thought, rolling her eyes. _That makes what, a dozen? More? Each more insipid than the last._ She tossed the crumpled ball of parchment at the waste basket in the corner of the room, but her aim was off and it bounced off of the wall.

"Wow, Els," came Anna's voice from the doorway. "I figured you'd make that shot with how often you take it." Elsa turned and saw her sister standing just inside the entrance to her study. A grin split her face and she hurried around the desk to pull Anna into a hug. "I'm glad to see you, too," the Princess said, returning the hug. "What was that, anyway? Another love letter?"

"Yes," Elsa groaned. She reluctantly pulled away from her sister and sighed. "From Sweden this time."

"Ah yes, Prince Lindorf," Anna said. She held a finger under her nose to simulate a mustache and adopted an exaggerated accent. "Oh, Your Most Rrrrroyal Majesty, I must say that I _thoroughly_ enjoyed my recent visit to Arendelle. Especially since it was a mere _two days_ and I slept _past noon_ both days after staying up all night drinking with my men. I do _so_ hope that you'll consider coming to visit Sweden so that I can show you the sights of country and express my… _appreciation._ " She finished her speech with a waggle of her eyebrows.

Elsa chuckled into a hand. "Stop it, Anna," she said. She glanced over at the trash can. "Though truthfully, you're not _that_ far off. He did invite me to Sweden to 'show his appreciation' for my 'immense hospitality' during his visit… Yet, he seemed to enjoy the local tavern more than anything else based on how often he was nursing a hangover." She sat on the edge of her desk and let out a sigh. "But yes, another trite letter that talks more about how much they enjoyed _Arendelle_ than they did getting to know _me…_ not that many of them have tried."

Anna sat down next to her sister. "Well, they don't know what they're missing," she said. "Which means I get you all to myself."

Elsa leaned over and rested her head on Anna's shoulder. She savored the quiet for a moment, then said, "This would all be so much easier if we could just marry each other."

She had expected Anna to laugh, but her sister was silent, almost thoughtful. Elsa was about to check and make sure that she was still breathing when Anna finally responded. "Why don't we?" she asked.

Elsa sat upright and let out a disbelieving, "What?" She was sure that she had misheard, there was no way that her sister was actually suggesting… "Anna, you can't be serious."

"Okay, maybe not _marriage_ ," Anna said, "but a… courtship or something." She hopped off of the desk and strode over to the window that overlooked the fjord. "Why wait for another second-rate Prince from who-knows-where to show up and be more interested in the crown he can get than the marvelous woman who wears it? You deserve someone who loves _Elsa_ , not just _The Queen_." Anna faltered in her speech, ducking her head a bit as she walked back toward the desk. "And… I'd like to be that someone, if you'll let me."

Elsa could only sit and stare for a moment. _Where did she learn how to be so romantic?_ she wondered. "I don't know, Anna," she said. "I'm not… it sounds…"

"Hey," Anna said, taking her sister's hands. "It's fine if you don't want to do this. It's not exactly a… normal idea. You can say 'no' and I won't be disappointed or upset or think any less of you."

Elsa was speechless. There was an earnestness in Anna's eyes that told her every word was true. She could turn down the proposition—an insane proposition, frankly—and Anna would accept her decision without a hint of disappointment or malice. The strange thing was that she _didn't_ want to turn it down. It was an outlandish idea to be sure, but it had its merits. There was, however, one thing that gave her pause.

"I don't want to hurt you," she said softly. "If we do this… if we try being _together_ but it doesn't work, or even worse if it _does_ work but we have to stop for some reason…" She dropped her eyes down to their joined hands, unable to hold her sister's intense gaze. "I don't think that I could live with myself if _I_ was the one who broke your heart."

"Oh, Elsa," Anna said, smiling. She lifted one of her sister's hand and kissed the back of it. "There's no one in the whole world I would rather trust with my heart than you."

Elsa ducked her head a bit while heat flooded her face. When Anna said it like that, she almost felt worthy of being entrusted with her heart. Even so, she chewed on her lip, unsure. Part of her wanted this, but that part worried her. Anna was her sister, so how could she even consider a romantic relationship with her? It should have been a repulsive idea, and yet…

"Tell you what," Anna said, derailing Elsa's train of thought. "I can tell that you're torn on this, and honestly I can't blame you." She stood up and took a few steps back. "So, I propose a test. Something that will help you figure out exactly how you feel."

"And that would be?" Elsa asked.

"Kiss me," Anna replied.

Elsa's heart leapt into her throat. The thought of kissing Anna both terrified her and sent butterflies through her stomach. It was an exciting idea, but she knew that this was a point of no return. If _anything_ were to happen between them, they would never be able to go back to be just sisters again. Steeling herself, she stood up and took a step closer to Anna. The redhead closed her eyes and pursed her lips slightly, content to wait until Elsa was ready. With one last deep breath, she leaned forward.

There was no jolt of lightning when their lips touched, no life-altering moment of clarity. Anna's lips were soft and warm, but they were flesh just like any other part of her. She held the contact for a few seconds, then pulled away. As strange as it sounded, she was a bit disappointed that she hadn't felt anything.

Anna opened her eyes a moment later, her confused expression seeming to ask, ' _is that it?'_ She glanced around, lost in thought. "Can I try?" she asked, "Me kissing you, I mean."

"Of course," Elsa replied. She wasn't sure how it would make a difference who was kissing whom, but she was willing to try if Anna wanted to. She wasn't exactly sure what she was supposed to do, so she just waited. Anna hesitated, starting to move forward only to sway back on her heels again. It was the first hint of nervousness that she had shown during their discussion, and Elsa could barely stand how adorable it made her sister look.

Anna finally stepped closer, bringing a hand up to cup Elsa's cheek while the other arm slid around her waist. Their lips met again, and Anna pulled her sister closer. Elsa felt Anna's lips moving against hers, so she tried to reciprocate. The hand on her cheek slid around to the back of her head, fingers weaving into her hair. Something stirred in Elsa's gut. The feeling of Anna's lips on hers, the hand on her back pulling her in and pressing their bodies together, the fingers in her hair, they all combined to spark a warmth that spread through her body and made her head swim. She brought her hands up and grabbed the shoulders of Anna's dress to steady herself.

She wasn't sure how long they kissed, but Elsa was panting lightly when they finally separated. She locked eyes with Anna. Her sister was flushed, but had a small self-satisfied smile on her face. Just as she had feared, something had sparked between them. There was no going back. "No one can know about this," she said, "about _us_."

"That just makes it more fun," Anna purred before capturing Elsa's lips in another kiss. Outside, bells tolled to herald the arrival of a new hour. Anna groaned and pulled away. "I have to go," she said.

"Go?" Elsa repeated. "Where?"

"I'm arbitrating a dispute between the leaders of the Merchant's Guild and the Fisherman's Guild," she said, taking a step back. Her hand trailed down Elsa's arm, sending a shiver through the blonde. "I'm supposed to be meeting them at the docks right now. I was actually on my way down there before I stopped to see you and got… distracted."

Elsa half-wanted to tell her sister to forget about the meeting, but she couldn't. She was proud of Anna for taking initiative in helping her manage the kingdom. There had been more than one time where she had decided to delegate a task to Anna, only to find that she had already chosen to take care of it herself. As enjoyable as it was, Elsa couldn't ask her sister to shirk her duties simply to stay with her and explore this new aspect of their relationship. "Well, you'd best not keep them waiting _too_ long," she said, moving back behind her desk. "Especially Josef. For a man whose job revolves around waiting for fish to get caught in a net, he's incredibly impatient."

Anna giggled and headed for the door. "Yeah," she replied, "the trick with him is to ask him about his grandchildren if he gets riled up. You'll have to listen to him gush about them for ten minutes or so, but when he's done he'll have completely forgotten why he was upset." She pulled the door open a bit, then paused. Before her sister could question it, she dashed back across the room, lunged across the desk, and planted one last kiss on Elsa's lips. Just as quickly, she bounded back across the room and out the door, calling back, "See you later, Els!"

Elsa sat and stared across her desk where Anna had been an instant before. Her lips still tingled from the parting kiss. She slumped back in her chair and muttered, "What have I gotten myself into?"

* * *

"Anna, it's time to get up," Elsa cooed. The mound of blankets and hair that allegedly contained her sister stirred for a moment, then grew still again. She prodded it with a finger, drawing a low guttural growl from the mound. "Come on, Anna. If you don't get up now, breakfast will be cold by the time you get there." She sat down on the edge of the bed. "Is it going to be like this _every day_ now?"

A pair of teal eyes peeked out from under the blanket. "You know the rules," Anna groused, her voice muffled. Elsa couldn't help but smile, despite her sister's stubbornness. A few days after their experience in her study, she had found Anna still in bed and woken her up with a kiss. Every day since then, Anna had refused to get out of bed without getting a kiss first. She claimed that she had been cursed and that only the kiss of a beautiful Queen could break the spell. Elsa leaned down, pulled the blanket aside, then gave her sister a kiss. Anna snaked an arm free and wrapped it around Elsa's neck, pulling her further down and holding her in place to prolong the contact. When they separated, the redhead was nearly purring in contentment.

"Alright, sleepyhead," Elsa said, "let's go. Up." Anna looked at her for a moment, then burrowed back into the blanket. Smirking, she called on her magic and let it course through her hand. "Alright, but you brought this on yourself," she said, then she dug her hand under the blanket and pressed it against the first patch of skin that she could find.

Anna shrieked and thrashed about. Her protective blanket betrayed her, twisting around her limbs and trapping her. "Stop it!" she cried. She finally managed to free an arm and flailed it in Elsa's direction. "That's not fair!"

"You know the rules," Elsa replied, grinning. She let the magic fade and pulled her hand out of the blanket. When her sister had calmed down, she set to work untangling her from the blanket. Once the redhead was free, Elsa took a hand and helped her out of bed. "Come on," she said as she pulled Anna up. "There's a bath waiting for you, and if you hurry there might still be some breakfast left for you when you're done."

Anna grumbled for a moment before muttering, "Fine." She lifted her arms and stretched. As she did, Elsa found her eyes tracing the slender curve of Anna's neck, the sharp lines of her collarbones, the gentle swell of her…

She tore her eyes away, looking back up as Anna's arms came down and rested on her shoulders. Her thoughts ran in half a dozen different direction, leaving her feeling more than a little confused. She'd never looked at her sister in a physical way before, but allure was undeniable. Regardless, it was neither the time nor place to ponder the issue, so she pushed the feelings to the back of her mind. Anna, oblivious to Elsa's distraction, grinned and said, "I think I'll need a little something extra to last me until I make it to breakfast."

"You're incorrigible," Elsa said before leaning in for another kiss. She wrapped her arms around the small of Anna's back while the arms around her neck pulled her closer. While they were kissing, she felt something wet swipe along her bottom lip. It was gone as quickly as it had arrived, so she ignored it. The wet feeling returned a few moments later, lingering and passing along her lip more slowly this time. Elsa pulled back and saw her sister's tongue retreat back into her mouth. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Anna ducked her head as her cheeks darkened. "Using my… tongue?" she quietly answered. She pulled her arms back and buried her face in her hands. "I know, I know. It's weird." She took a breath and looked up again, her face still solidly crimson. "But years ago I was just wandering around and I saw a handmaiden and stableboy that were kissing using their tongues. They really seemed to enjoy it, so I thought I would try it." She smiled bashfully. "Guess I should have mentioned it _before_ I decided to try it, huh?"

"That might have helped," Elsa replied. She darted in and gave one last chaste kiss. "We'll have to try that later. For now, you need to get to your bath."

"You're no fun," Anna muttered, crossing her arms and pouting.

"I believe the problem is that you find me entirely _too much_ fun," Elsa shot back. "Now go. I'll see you at breakfast." She turned to leave the room, only to let out a yelp when squeezed her butt. "Anna!" she hissed, whirling back around. "I told you not to do that!"

"And I told _you_ to not have such a cute butt," Anna retorted. She winked, then headed off to the her closet. Elsa glared after for her a moment, then got an idea. She summoned her magic and formed a snowball. Taking careful aim, she tossed it and hit her sister square in the buttocks. It was Anna's turn to yelp, her hands whipping down to cover her now wet backside. The redhead turned and stuck her tongue out, then scurried into her closet as a second snowball sailed past.

Elsa let out a small sigh, then turned and left the room. She headed for the dining room, but the walk left her alone with her thoughts. The image of Anna's soft skin crept back into her mind. There was no point in denying it; her sister was attractive. Very much so, in fact. It was a strange observation for her to make, and not only because it was about her own sister. She had never been attracted to a woman before. _Not that any of the men parading themselves through here have been anything to look at,_ she thought wryly. _But maybe that wasn't their fault._

She stopped and gazed out a window, letting her mind wander a little further. She had never paid much thought to who she might be attracted to. Being the Queen, it likely wouldn't have mattered anyway. Her marriage would be one of political convenience, not love. Her parents had been lucky enough to fall in love and be happily married for years, but they had been careful to tell her and her sister that not all rulers had the same fortune. Their warning hadn't dissuaded Anna from her dreams of marrying a Prince with whom she fell in love at first sight, and Elsa was secretly envious of her sister for it. Being "only" the Crown Princess, Anna was under significantly less pressure to choose a spouse who could offer something to Arendelle. If Anna met a man whom she wanted to marry for love-and whom she had known for a time measured in months or years rather than days-Elsa was prepared to give her blessing. However, she knew that she wouldn't have that luxury, and had tried to prepare herself for a purely political marriage. She would entertain the various Princes that paraded through her kingdom, then pick the one that offered Arendelle the most in return for her hand.

 _At least, that's how it was_ _ **supposed**_ _to happen,_ she thought. As usual, Anna had upended her carefully laid plans in what seemed like an instant. Their short relationship had shown her what it was like having a partner who loved her. Over the years that she had spent preparing for her rule as Queen, she had come to terms with the idea that she might never achieve the same kind of loving marriage that her parents had enjoyed. She had even spent some time worried that her powers would prevent her from marrying at all.

Yet in little more than two weeks, Anna had made her question whether she would be able to tolerate a marriage to someone that she didn't truly love. They had done little more than kiss. But every time they finally went their separate ways, her head was swimming and she couldn't stop grinning. She had even caught herself daydreaming in the middle of a few Council meetings wondering when they would next be able to sneak off somewhere private.

 _Is this… Love?_ she wondered. The thought had floated through her mind amidst half a dozen others, but once it took root it slowly grew until it crowded out all others. _Am I_ _ **in love**_ _with Anna? I loved her before, is this really any different?_ Questions swirled around her mind, pulling her in different directions.

Something pressed against her cheek, pulling her from her thoughts and making her jump. She turned to see Anna giggling at her fright. "Don't do that, Anna," she chided, swatting at her sister's arm.

Anna caught Elsa's hand and held it. "What, I can't give my wonderful sister a kiss on the cheek?" she asked. "Besides, I called your name like four times, but you didn't answer."

"Oh," Elsa replied. "I'm sorry. I was… lost in thought."

"Clearly," Anna said, smirking. "Now, come on miss 'hurry or you'll be late for breakfast.' I don't know what the chefs cooked up, but it smells amazing and I'm starving." She took off down the hall, pulling Elsa along by the hand. The blonde did her best to keep up, thankful that she had opted for flat shoes instead of heels.

Elsa was out of breath by the time they reached the dining room. _Too much time sitting behind my desk, I suppose._ The table was arrayed with a veritable feast of fruits, meats, and pastries, but she had no appetite. Her stomach twisted and churned while her mind quickly resumed the train of thought that Anna had derailed earlier. She peeked over at her sister out of the corner of her eye. Despite her attempt at discretion, the redhead caught her and offered a warm smile that made her heart flutter. She discarded any last vestiges of doubt. She was hopelessly in love with Anna, that much was painfully obvious. The only question that remained was: what would they do about it?

"Anna," she said, "we need to talk." Her sister froze and looked up at her, fork still halfway in her mouth. Elsa put her own silverware and pushed her plate away. She had barely eaten but she still felt like she was going to be sick. "I just… Well…" Anna was looking at her expectantly. She took a deep breath and started talking, hopeful that she would be able to channel some small part of Anna's ability to improvise.

"I've been… thinking," Elsa said. "We need to talk about where we're going with this-" She motioned between them. "-with… _us._ " She glanced at the door, regretting her decision to delve into the conversation somewhere other than her study. Anna's expression shifted from mild intrigue to concern, and Elsa tried to offer half a dozen different explanations and reassurances at once. "It's just that I want to make sure that we're both… If we're not in the same, or at least headed in the same… We've been kind of playing this by ear until now, but-"

" _Hey_ ," Anna interjected, cutting across the blonde's rambling. She took one of Elsa's hands and gave it a gentle squeeze. "As cute as it is to see you flustered like this, just tell me what's wrong. Whatever's going on in that adorable little head of yours, just let it out and we'll figure it out together."

"Right," Elsa said. "As I was trying to say, I think that it's important that we have a discussion about where we're going with our… relationship." Her throat felt like it was closing up, and she wondered if Anna could hear her heart thundering in her chest. "Because I… I think that…" She gathered what shreds of courage she could and blurted out, "I love you."

Anna gave her a bemused smile. "Is that all?" she asked. "Because I _know_ that I love you."

"That's not-" Elsa huffed and chewed on he rip for a moment. "I mean I think that I'm falling _in love_ with you… romantically." Anna's smile morphed into a predatory grin. She stood up and scampered over to the door, sliding the lock into place before coming back to the table.

"That's good," she said before turning Elsa's chair away from the table. She climbed onto it and straddled the blonde's legs, resting her arms on Elsa's shoulders. "Because I am completely, absolutely-" She leaned closer as she spoke, until Elsa could feel her breath ghosting against her lips. "-one hundred percent, head over heels _in love_ with you." She closed the last distance between them, lavishing her sister with a long, languid kiss.

Elsa nearly melted into her chair. All of the questions swirling through her mind faded away, lost in the feeling of Anna pressed so close against her. The redhead's scent surrounded her, fresh and earthy like the trees that she still loved to climb. Her sister started to pull away, but she wrapped her arms around her and held her in place. She savored the kiss for a moment longer, then let go and fell back against her chair. There were so many things that she wanted to say and questions that she wanted to ask, but she was having trouble forming a coherent thought after the kiss. Eventually, she managed a weak, "Wow." Anna giggled, and the sound made her heart skip a beat.

"I agree," Anna said. She lingered for a moment, finally pulling back when her sister started to lean up for another kiss. "Not here," she whispered as she climbed down from Elsa's lap. "But there'll be _plenty_ of time for it later." She sat back in her chair and went back to her food.

Elsa could only sit and stare. Anna's confession, and the subsequent kiss, had lifted a weight from her shoulders and allowed her to breathe more easily. But it also raised more questions than it answered. Several of the them fought for her attention, begging to be asked. However, all she managed to do was blurt out, "How?"

" _How?_ " Anna repeated, giggling again. "How could I _not?_ I mean, just look at you. You're smart, funny, kind, and _breath-takingly_ gorgeous." She speared a piece of fruit and shrugged. "It was really just a matter of time before it happened."

The sound of someone trying to open the door echoed across the room, followed shortly by a trio of firm knocks. Anna pushed her sister's plate back toward her, then stood up. "Eat," she said, "there'll be plenty of time to talk about it once we're somewhere a little more… private." She winked before skipping off to unlock the door.

Elsa resolutely tried to ignore the blush she could feel spreading across her face. She went back to picking at her food, though her mind was too busy whirling with questions for her to worry about being hungry. She looked up and saw Kai following Anna back to the table. "Good morning, Kai," she said.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," he replied, bowing. "Your morning session of Open Court is due to start in ten minutes. Will you be ready by then, or would you like me to postpone it for a time?"

Elsa thought for a moment, looking to Anna. She was sorely tempted to push Open Court back by half an hour or so for a bit of private time with her sister. _Maybe I can start it on time and just 'accidentally' be a bit late._ She pondered the idea for a moment longer before dismissing it. Her father's lessons about her duties as Queen were instilled too deeply. Even if she did sneak away with Anna, she would just be thinking about how she should be attending to her Open Court.

"That won't be necessary, Kai," she said. "I'll be along shortly, thank you." Kai bowed and left. When the door closed behind him, Elsa sighed and looked at her sister.

"Don't look at me," she said, a smirk tugging at her lips. " _You're_ the one who decided that it was a good idea to tell me that you loved me ten minutes before you had to hold Open Court."

Elsa sat back and crossed her arms. "Oh?" she said. "And when _should_ I have told you?"

Anna tapped her chin for a moment, though her lopsided grin told Elsa that she already had her answer and was only pretending to think about it. "If I had to guess," she said at length, "I would say either over a romantic candlelit dinner, or down on one knee while proposing to me."

"Oh, really?" Elsa asked. She had to admit that Anna's suggestions had a certain level of romance and elegance that her stammering confession over breakfast lacked. "Well, it's clear that you've put a lot of thought into this." She couldn't say that she was surprised. She had had a lot of time to plan out things like that while she was locked away in the castle for years.

However, there was one question that Anna's prepared response brought to mind. "How long have you known?" she asked. The redhead looked up at her, a hint of panic in her eyes as they darted around. "Anna," she said more sternly. "How long have you known?"

"That's not important," Anna replied, waving a hand dismissively. She pushed away from the table a little more forcefully than necessary, causing her chair to screech across the stone floor. She cleared her throat and said, "Well, you need to get to Open Court, so I won't keep you any longer." She turned on her heel and strode towards the door, only for a wall of ice to spring up in front of her.

Elsa stood slowly and approached her sister, who stared down at her shoes. She lifted Anna's chin with a hand. "There's no wrong answer, Anna," she said softly. "Whether it was last month, last week, or even years ago." Anna bit her lip, and Elsa asked, " _Was it_ years ago?"

"No," Anna replied, before hastily clarifying, "Well, not really. It's just…" she blew out a breath. "It's complicated." Outside, bells rang to signal the arrival of a new hour. Anna glanced out the window. "You need to go," she said, holding up a finger as her sister started to say something. "I promise that I'll tell you everything and anything you want to know when you get back. But for now, you need to focus on your duty."

Elsa pursed her lips. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Anna was right. "Fine," she said. "but I had better not come back to find out that you ran up the mountain to hide with the trolls… _again_."

"Oh come on, I did that _one_ time," Anna retorted, crossing her arms. "You really need to let that go."

"Not a chance," Elsa said, smiling. She gave Anna a kiss on the cheek as she walked past, heading out of the dining room. As she neared the Throne Room, she heard voices echoing from down the hall. _Already out the door_ , she thought. _Wonderful._ Any hope that she'd had for a quick session of Court were dashed. The people waiting in line fell silent as she passed, except for a few nobles who offered her perfunctory greetings as she walked. She couldn't help but give a light sigh as she sat down, motioning for the first supplicant to approach.

* * *

Elsa had thoroughly reached the end of her patience. After a grueling session of Open Court, she had been stopped by Duke Alexi Karloff, Arendelle's Master of Coin and one of the most influential members of her Royal Council. He had initially claimed to only want a moment of her time, but he had droned on for so long that over half of the Council's members had stopped and surrounded them, trying to stage an impromptu Council meeting. She had been waiting patiently for a pause in the conversation that she could use to excuse herself, but it was becoming increasingly clear that such a pause was never coming.

" _Gentlemen_ ," she said forcefully, precluding a retort that Duke Karloff was about to release. "I appreciate all of your concerns, but this is neither the time nor place to discuss them. Since _so many_ of you seem to have something to say that's important enough to _stop me in the middle of the hall_ -" She met each Council member's gaze in turn, taking a small enjoyment from watching them squirm and wilt under her stare. "I'll have Kai arrange an additional Council meeting for tomorrow morning. I'll have him send out messengers with the specific time later this afternoon."

"Of course, Your Majesty," Duke Karloff replied, bowing. "Please accept my deepest apologies on behalf of us all. I did begin this mess, after all. We shan't take up any more of your time than we already have." He turned and beckoned to the rest of the assembled Council members. "Come gentlemen, Duchess Haskaal, let us away." He bowed once more to the Queen, then turned and headed down the hallway. The rest of the members followed him, a few of them grumbling to one another shortly before moving out of earshot.

Elsa watched them leave for a moment. She couldn't figure out Alexi. He vacillated between being stubborn as an Ox and obedient as a Hound, sometimes within the same sentence. _A mystery for another time,_ she thought. Her mind returned to Anna, not that the redhead had been far from her thoughts since she left breakfast. It occurred to her that they had neglected to agree on where to meet once she was done with Court.

 _Only so many places she can be,_ she thought as she started off toward her study. Unfortunately, her study was empty, as was Anna's room. That left the library as the last place her sister might be that didn't require climbing either on top of the castle or up a mountain. She quickly made her way to the library, barely slowing as she threw open the door.

"Anna?" she called out. A faint echo floated back to her, but the massive room was otherwise silent. She waited a few moments, mentally working on the scolding she was going to give Anna when she finally found whatever hiding place she had run off to. Just as she was about to leave, she heard Anna's voice float out from the back corner of the library.

"Over here."

She headed deeper into the library, rounding a corner into a small alcove with two large chairs facing a window. Anna was sitting in one with her legs pulled up to her chest. She smiled as Elsa came into view. She moved over as much as she could and patted the seat next to her. Elsa sat down, and Anna snuggled up next to her, laying her head on Elsa's shoulder. The pair sat in silence, Elsa staring at Anna while she stared out the window. The redhead chewed on her lip for a moment, seeming to need one last bit of time to organize her thoughts.

"I think I fell in love with the _idea_ of you first," Anna said after a time. She chewed her bottom lip. "Maybe 'love' isn't the right word. I venerated you, worshipped you almost. You were like my own personal valkyrie, sent down by the gods to watch over me. I could only catch fleeting glimpses of you; not enough to really see you, but just enough to make me keep trying. Even though we never saw each other, you would always get me the absolute perfect gifts for my birthday. It was like you knew what I wanted even better than I did." She sighed and looked out the window. "I had these… powerful feelings for you, but I didn't know what they meant or what to do with them."

Anna fell silent for a few moments, simply staring out over the fjord. After a time, Elsa asked, "When did you realize that your feelings for me were… romantic?"

"That part was easy, actually," Anna replied. "It was out on the fjord, when I saw…" She paused and swallowed. "When I saw Hans about to… to _kill_ you." She took Elsa's hand and squeezed it, as if to make sure that her sister was really there. "I saw you just sitting there, that sword ready to swing down on you. I knew in that moment that I had to save you, even if it would cost me my life."

Elsa pulled her sister into a hug, squeezing her eyes shut against the tears welling up in them. "I'm so sorry," she murmured.

"For the thousandth time, I forgive you," Anna replied. She leaned into the hug, nestling her face in Elsa's neck. "How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"A thousand more should do it," Elsa said. They separated and she gave her sister a quick kiss on the cheek. After a few moments of silence, she asked, "Where do we go from here?"

Anna grinned. "Well," she said, "there's still some time until lunch, and no one knows where we are, so…" She ducked away from a playful swat, giggling. "I know. I know." She tapped her fingers on the arm of the chair, thinking. "Does this really change anything?" she asked. "I mean, we still have to be careful and keep our relationship secret. All that's different is that now we know it's real."

Elsa shrunk in on herself a bit, her eyes dropping to her lap. "It was always real to me," she murmured.

Anna reached down and linked their fingers. "Me too," she said. "I just didn't want to speak for you." She leaned in for a kiss, then laid her head on Elsa's shoulder. "So, here we are; two lovers with an impossible romance. We're just like Romeo and Juliet, except we're both girls… and related to one another. Also, wasn't Juliet like thirteen years old?" She pursed her lips. "Maybe we're not _exactly_ like Romeo and Juliet."

"That's probably for the best, seeing as how they both died at the end of the play," Elsa said. She chuckled as her sister stuck her tongue out at her. "But I suppose you're right. In the end, not much has changed." She brought her hand up and trailed her nails along Anna's side, causing the redhead to squirm. "There was something else that you were right about, too."

"Hmm?" Anna said around a poorly suppressed giggle. "What?"

"No one knows where we are," Elsa replied. Her sister's face lit up, and the redhead nearly knocked her out of the chair when she pounced. Before she could register what had happened, Anna had straddled her and captured her lips in a fierce kiss. It was a bit rough, but Elsa couldn't complain. Anna's infectious enthusiasm had her fighting back just as hard, and she let her lips part when she felt her sister's tongue brush against them.


	2. Chapter 2

Anna leaned against a counter in the castle kitchen. Her foot tapped against the stone floor while she stared at the wall, her mind elsewhere.

In the few weeks that had passed since she and Elsa confessed their romantic feelings for one another, Anna found herself more and more distracted by her sister's incredible body. She traced Elsa's every curve with her eyes whenever she got the chance. The blonde had even begun to invade her dreams, and Anna had woken up hot and bothered multiple times after abrupt endings to some rather steamy ones.

Anna sighed. Spending so much time thinking about Elsa was getting her riled up, but the Queen was returning from a short trip to a nearby town and wouldn't be getting home until early the next morning. _Not that it really matters,_ she thought wryly. Despite having been together for over a month, she and Elsa had done little more than kiss. Their daily make out sessions had gotten more intense, with lips branching out to trail along a jawline or neck. But the taste of something slightly adventurous only left Anna desperately thirsty for more. She wanted to feel Elsa's skin underneath her fingers, taste the swell of her breasts, bury her face in Elsa's—

"Good morning, Your Highness."

Anna snapped out of her fantasy to see Gerda walking by with a basket of eggs. "Morning," she said hastily. She tried to act casual, painfully aware of the fire roiling in her gut.

"Are you alright, dear?" Gerda asked. "You've got a bit more color today than usual."

Anna scrubbed at her cheeks, as if it would have any effect on the flush pervading them. "I'm fine," she said. "Just a little… warm." She peeked at the door, wondering if she could make an escape without seeming suspicious. Though, the sidelong glance that Gerda was giving her suggested that it was too late for that. She racked her brain for an excuse to leave, but she couldn't get the image of Elsa lying naked on the bed out of her mind.

"Not sure why you'd come down here if you're warm," Gerda said, sprinkling some kindling into the belly of the stove. She lit a long match and held it to the dry tinder until it caught fire. "This old thing burns like a bonfire. It makes it sauna down here if you run it too hot or too long." She turned the damper and the flames shrunk. "Now, you seem awfully distracted this morning. Did you have something you wanted to talk about?"

" _No!_ " Anna said too forcefully. She clamped her mouth shut before she could dig the hole she was in any deeper. _Although…_ she thought. _Talking might help. And Gerda's the closest I've got to a mom now._ She grimaced, unable to believe that she was about to discuss how to seduce her sister with a woman who helped raise them both.

"Actually," she said, "there was _one_ thing." She tried to ignore the little satisfied smirk on Gerda's face. _Just be concise. Don't babble._ She swallowed and plowed ahead before she could overthink what she was doing.

"Let's say, in a _completely hypothetical_ scenario, that there were two people in a… romantic relationship," she said, wringing her hands. She stared at the floor, afraid that she would crack like an egg under Gerda's scrutinizing stare. "A-and they're… in love." Every fiber of her being screamed at her to just stop talking and run away, but she pressed on. "How would these theoretical people know when to make their relationship more… _physical?_ "

Gerda froze for a moment, then went back to preparing some food. She took her time to answer, which caused Anna to start squirming impatiently. "If nothing else," she said at length, "they should at least wait until after they're married. It would be a shame if there were to be an… accident out of wedlock." She sighed. "I've heard too many stories of young women who thought that they were 'truly in love,' only to watch the men they were with walk out the door when they were with child."

Anna blinked, confused by the turn their conversation had taken. _But Elsa and I can't even… Oh…_ She grabbed a spoon lying on the counter and fiddled with it. "And what if they _couldn't_ get married?" she asked. "Because they… just can't. But w— _they_ still love each other very much."

Gerda put down the knife she was using and wiped her hands on her apron. She walked over next to Anna and leaned against the counter. "As difficult as it may be to believe, I was once a young maiden," she said, smiling. "I may not have been the most beautiful woman in the village, but I had my share of gentleman suitors. I know the rush of emotions that comes with being in love." She paused, her smile fading. "But I also know that _one_ mistake can have very serious consequences. I would tell these _hypothetical_ people that if they can't be married, then they shouldn't be considering making their relationship more serious."

Next to her, the Princess slumped down. " _But_ ," Gerda continued, "I know that young people are prone to recklessness, especially ones in love. _If_ they truly wanted to make their relationship more serious, then I would suggest that they be _extremely_ careful."

Anna didn't respond. She couldn't. It was embarrassingly clear that Gerda had seen right through her. She wanted nothing more than to run to her room and hide there for the next decade. "I'm gonna… go," she said weakly. She forced herself to move, heading resolutely towards the door. Once she reached it, she broke out into a run and didn't stop until she was back in her room.

* * *

"We should have sex."

Elsa froze, her thumbs still hooked into the pair of riding breeches she was trying to take off. "I'm sorry," she said, looking over her shoulder at her sister. "Could you repeat that?"

Anna could only look back at her from over the hand that she had hastily clamped over her mouth. The redhead slowly lowered it and tried again. "Um, good morning?" she said, smiling nervously. "How was the trip?"

Elsa turned and crossed her arms. She knew that all she had to do was wait and eventually Anna would crack. As the silence stretched, her sister began fidgeting uncomfortably. _Three… Two… One…_

"I said that I think we should have sex!" Anna blurted out. Elsa raised an eyebrow, and the redhead hurriedly tried to offer an explanation. "I didn't mean it. Well, I _meant_ it, I just didn't mean to say it first thing when I saw you. I was going to build up to it and bring it up gently, but…" She waved her hands towards Elsa's legs. "Have you _seen_ your butt in those things?" The blonde coughed into a hand to try and cover up the blush spreading up her neck. After a few seconds of silence, Anna asked, "Have you… ever thought about it?"

"Occasionally," Elsa replied, feeling the heat rise up to her cheeks. "It sounds… exciting, but I don't… I mean I've never…"

"Well, of course not," Anna said. "Not to be mean, but I would be surprised if you _had_ what with you locking yourself away for years." She leaned over and nudged her sister with an elbow. "But I'm sure that you got plenty of practice by yourself." The blonde wrapped her arms around her stomach and looked off to the side.

"Wait…" Anna said, blinking. "You mean that you've never even…" She trailed off, vaguely motioning towards her waist. "Played with yourself?"

"No," Elsa replied feebly. She couldn't believe that she was having this conversation with _anyone_ , least of all her sister. "I tried once when I was… 14, I think, but I started to lose control of my powers while I was focusing on what felt good. I haven't had the courage to try since." She glanced at Anna, who seemed to have several questions but was unable to decide which one to ask.

Outside, the city's clock tower rang out, announcing the arrival of a new hour. Elsa grimaced; she was officially late. "I'm sorry, Anna," she said. "I missed you, and I'd love to spend some time together, but I have a Council meeting this morning that I'm late for."

"Oh," Anna replied, her expression falling, "right. I'll just… get out of your hair then." She gave a weak smile and started for the door.

"Anna," Elsa called after her sister. The redhead looked back, one hand already on the doorknob. "I'll think about… what you said." Anna's face lit up and she ran back across the room to give Elsa a kiss. It was a fairly innocent one, but several days apart combined with her sister's infectious enthusiasm made Elsa want to pull Anna closer and deepen it. _You're late,_ she reminded herself, but she couldn't bring herself to care overly much.

Fortunately, Anna broke the kiss and skipped back to the door, giving a final wave before she ducked outside. Elsa could only stare at the door for a few moments, her mind swirling with a dozen different thoughts. She buried her face in her hands and groaned. _As if this wasn't hard enough,_ she thought. She ran her hands through her hair and pushed the maelstrom of thoughts to the back of her mind. _I'll worry about it later._

* * *

As it turned out, 'later' was about thirty seconds after her meeting with her Council had started. Duke Karloff had taken the floor to discuss… something. Elsa sometimes had trouble keeping track of the various topics that the Duke hopped between from day to day. _Is he back to the feral cats? Or was that last time?_

Regardless of which particular topic Duke Karloff was rambling on about, Elsa had difficulty paying attention. She kept her eyes on him, primarily watching his hands wave around while he talked, but her mind wandered elsewhere. Anna's words echoed in her mind again.

 _You mean that you've never even… played with yourself?_

Elsa furrowed her brow. _Why did she point… down there?_ she wondered. Thinking back to the time that she had tried 'playing with herself,' she had found that her breasts were much more pleasurable than her… 'womanhood' as her mother had called it. Her mother had explained to her, in graphic detail, that one day she would lay with her husband and use the slit between her legs would be used to conceive and bear a child. But for now, all it was good for was bleeding once a month while being uncomfortable and messy the rest of the time.

She refocused on the meeting. Alexi was still droning on about the cats. _Is that how you're supposed to do it?_ she wondered, her mind wandering again. _I suppose it makes sense._ Her mother had made sex sound like a chore that Elsa would need to suffer through for the sake of her husband and the kingdom. Between that and her lone failure at pleasuring herself, she had obstinately refused to give the subject much thought. But now that Anna had forced her to think about it, she was having a difficult time stopping. _Anna thought that I'd had lots of… practice. Has she?_ The idea of her sister touching herself made Elsa's heart race. It was a dangerous line of thought, but she could pursue it just a _bit_ more…

"Your Majesty?"

Elsa snapped back to attention. Half of the table was staring at her, while the other half made poor attempts at hiding their furtive glances. She desperately tried to come up with an excuse that didn't involve fantasizing about her sister. "I'm sorry," she said. "It seems breakfast isn't sitting well with me." She considered her options while the nobles exchanged looks with one another. It was tempting to postpone the meeting and come back once she had cleared her head, but that wasn't a long term solution. She was already frequently distracted by thoughts of Anna, and she didn't foresee that changing in the near future.

"If I may, Your Majesty?" Alexi began. He waited for Elsa's nod to continue. "You've attended every single Council meeting since becoming Queen, barring a small handful when you've been ill." He paused for a moment, weighing his words. "While your dedication is certainly admirable, we understand the weight of the Crown. Should you wish to… eschew a meeting on occasion, we would not be offended." He smiled and added, "Why, during the first year of your father's rule, he missed more Council meetings than he attended."

Elsa considered the idea. It was certainly intriguing, yet it seemed odd to have a meeting designed to inform her of the goings on of the kingdom without her. _A little delegation never hurt anyone_. "Very well," she said, standing. "But I want a summary of any topics discussed in my absence on my desk by this evening."

"Of course, Your Majesty," Alexi replied, bowing.

"If you'll excuse me, gentlemen," Elsa said, heading for the door. She ducked out into the hallway, but didn't know where to go once the door closed behind her. She felt uneasy, a strange mix of excitement and guilt, as if she were a child skipping her tutoring lessons. The muted voices of the Council drifted through the door, so Elsa started walking. She pondered the possibilities of her newfound freedom. It didn't take long for her to land back on thoughts of Anna.

 _Where did she get off to?_ Elsa wondered. She had half a mind to track Anna down and drag her sister back to her bedroom. But even with her recent fascination— _or obsession_ —with sex, the idea of actually sleeping with Anna was still terrifying. Not least because she had no idea how to go about it.

 _Anna did mention getting 'practice.'_ Elsa bit her lip, her mind flashing back to her room covered in a layer of snow. Even so, the memories of the pleasure she had felt before she stopped made her gut churn. A familiar discomfort was brewing, but it was stronger than usual. It was an itch deep inside of her. One that she couldn't scratch, or rather, that she didn't entirely trust herself to.

She headed for her room, passing several servants along the way who stepped aside and bowed as always. Despite the normalcy of it, she couldn't help but think that they knew. She didn't know how they were supposed to know, but somehow... somehow, they knew what she was thinking. They all knew what she was going to do once she reached her bedchambers. Most importantly, they hall knew _who_ she would be thinking about while doing so. She shook her head and chided herself. _Don't be ridiculous._ Regardless, she quickened her pace until she finally reached the safety of her room and bolted the door shut behind her.

Elsa slumped against the door. She had been in such a hurry to get back, but she was at a loss of what to do now that she was alone. _First things first, I suppose._ She slid out of her dress and tossed it over the back of a chair. Her bra and panties followed suit, though they would have to be washed later after a cursory inspection showed that her panties were more than a little moist. Briefly she worried about having left evidence of her excitement on the council seat. She swallowed her fears loudly and, after a second check to make sure that the door was indeed bolted shut, she climbed onto her bed. Having arrived at her destination, she sighed and leaned against the wall, once again at a loss of what to do.

 _Well, Anna pointed down there, so…_ Elsa trailed a hand down her body, over her stomach and through the sparse hairs over her groin. She ran a finger along the slit between her legs. A surge of pleasure shot through her, causing her to suck in a sharp breath. She brought her hand back up and examined her finger. It was wet. She knew that it happened whenever she felt... weird? Excited? But had never thought about it beyond that. She stuck her tongue out to taste it before she could think any better of it. The liquid had a sharp, tangy taste, but it wasn't unpleasant.

The feeling in her gut swelled. She felt warm all over, but it was strongest between her legs. Elsa carefully reached back down and did it again, tracing her finger up and down until it was coated in the liquid. She slid the tip of her finger into her vagina, gasping at the strange yet pleasant sensation. She pushed deeper, until her finger was completely engulfed. It was odd, the feeling was both powerful and not enough. She pulled her hand back, then went back in with two fingers, working them in and out.

 _Better, but—_ Her thoughts evaporated as a bolt of white hot bliss raced through her. Elsa froze for a moment, trying to figure out what had happened. She pushed in as deeply as she could. Her palm pressed against her skin, and a second weaker swell of pleasure pulsed out. She pulled her fingers out and felt around the lips of her vagina. Just above them, she found a small nub that sent intense waves of pleasure through her when she rubbed it.

Something niggled at the back of her mind, but she pushed it away. She worked her fingers in and out, building a steady rhythm and rubbing her palm against her clit when she pushed in. A guttural moan threatened to tear its way from her lips, and she had to bite them to keep from making noise. The heat in her groin coiled and built. She wasn't sure what it was building to, but she just knew it had to be amazing. Why else would Anna have gotten so excited when she'd agreed just to _think_ about having sex with her?

"Little… more…" Elsa panted. Her breathing was ragged and sweat glued her hair to her face. The niggling feeling came back stronger, but she ignored it again. She could feel that she was close to something. It felt like she was moving toward the edge of a cliff, but she couldn't quite get there. She grunted in annoyance. Just as she neared the edge of the cliff, it moved just out of reach. She brought her free hand up and teased her nipple.

 _Clomp… Clomp… Clomp…_

Elsa's eyes shot open. She froze, fingers buried deep in herself. The footsteps grew closer. She didn't dare to even breathe. A shadow moved in front of her door, and for an instant she thought that it might pass by. That hope died as the feet stopped in the middle of the door and three quick raps sounded from the wood.

"One moment!" Elsa called, wincing at the panic that tinged her voice. She leapt out of bed and took stock of her dismal situation. _Clothes._ She glanced at the dress she'd tossed over the chair. It would take too long to wiggle back into it. She summoned her magic and waved a hand down her body to quickly conjure a robe. The arousal in her gut churned and flared, reminding her that she had unfinished business. She ignored it, but had to bite back a groan as her magic faded. Her libido had bled over into her magic, it seemed. The "robe" she had created was little more than a thin, sheer piece that clung to her body and barely stretched down to her butt. She quickly waved it away, then took a deep breath to try again.

However, Elsa's attempt at calming herself only served to alert her to a new problem. Her room stank of sex. She had to bite her tongue to keep from screaming in frustration. She grabbed the sheet from her bed, wrapped it around herself, said a quick prayer to the gods, then opened the door slightly. "Yes, Kai?" she asked, leaning around so that only her head and a shoulder were visible.

If the whole ordeal phased him in the least, Kai didn't show it. "Forgive me, Your Majesty," he said, bowing. "But the Governess of Trondheim has arrived in the city. She is still settling into her accommodations, but she will arrive at the castle within the hour."

"Of course, thank you. I'll be along shortly," Elsa said. She chided herself inwardly, unable to believe that she had gotten so distracted as to forget about the Governess' visit. She expected Kai to bow and excuse himself as he always did, but he didn't. The butler shifted from one foot to the other, uncharacteristically ill at ease. "Was there… Something else?" she asked.

"Pray forgive me if this… oversteps certain bounds," Kai said. "But I've heard that women will sometimes use an unburnt candle or the handle of a hairbrush if they are having trouble… trying to relieve themselves."

Elsa felt like the floor had fallen out from under her. Part of her wished that it had and a bottomless pit would swallow her up, never to be seen again. She was unable to move or respond, struck dumb by the simple fact that someone knew. _Not just someone,_ she thought. _Kai. He… He heard me…_

She snapped back to attention, but Kai was already gone. The door echoed through her room as she closed it before heading back to the bed. She flopped down on it and buried her head under the pillows, content to stay there until she starved.

* * *

Elsa prowled through the halls, searching for the only splash of red hair in the castle. Unfortunately, her plan to hide away in her room forever had not withstood the discipline drilled into her by her father, so she had reluctantly left her room to prepare to receive the Mayoress. Before she could focus on that, though, she needed to find Anna. Her arousal had dampened after being interrupted, but it hadn't fully abated. The raging fire had burned down to a bed of smoldering embers, but it still tickled in her gut and beckoned her to stoke it again.

Elsa headed out into one of the castle's gardens. A small part of her hoped that the fresh air might help clear her head, but deep down she knew it wouldn't make a difference. She was about to head back inside when she heard her sister's voice float over from the other side of the garden. She made her way around some bushes and found Anna kneeling next to a pond and talking to some ducks. She cleared her throat as she approached, causing her sister to jump and look up.

"Oh, Elsa, it's just you," Anna said. She stood up and brushed off her skirt. "What's up? I didn't— _._ " Her words trailed off as she got a good look at Elsa. Her sister's normally ice blue eyes were darker, and her whole bearing was that of a predator who had finally cornered their prey. Anna took a step back, but Elsa's hand darted forward and slid around her back to hold her in place. Anna's breath caught in her throat as the blonde closed in.

Elsa closed the last few inches between them and pressed their lips together. After a moment, her tongue met Anna's and began a now familiar dance. It was good, but she wanted more. She _needed_ more. She raked her nails over Anna's stomach, causing her sister to let out a pitiful moan. Elsa reluctantly pulled back. Once they separated, she said, "We should have sex."

"Okay," Anna murmured, her eyes unfocused. She grabbed at her dress, clumsily trying to undo some of the laces and zippers that held it together.

The words 'not here' leapt to Elsa's lips, but she bit them back. She was already on edge, with only a thin veneer of decorum and sense keeping her from ravaging her sister on the spot. The extra level of risk and excitement from doing so outdoors was too much for her to handle. She grabbed Anna by the wrist and led her toward the far edge of the garden. She found a spot along the wall nestled between two large bushes. She pulled Anna into it and pushed her up against the wall before attacking her with frenzied kisses. Her sister responded eagerly.

Elsa tried to work at the laces holding the redhead's dress closed, but she was too worked up for the fine maneuvers necessary and ended up simply dragging her nails over Anna's ribs. Thankfully, her sister was up to the task, and the laces slackened after a few seconds of tugging. She slid the dress off of Anna's shoulders, letting it fall down to her waist and revealing her pert breasts.

"No bra?" Elsa asked, grinning salaciously.

"I don't like the way it feels," Anna said, glancing off to the side. The flush in her face and neck deepened. "If I'm not doing anything… official for a while, sometimes I take it off." She shrugged. "It's not like you can tell, anyway."

"Oh really?" Elsa wondered aloud, leaning back in to kiss Anna's neck. She summoned the barest hint of her magic to chill the tip of her finger. "I suppose I could make it—" She used her finger to circle Anna's nipple, which hardened under her cold touch. "—a little more _noticeable_." She nipped at the redhead's collarbone, drawing a sharp gasp from her.

"Elsa," Anna whined. "This isn't fair." She pawed helplessly at Elsa's chest, still hidden under her dress. "You're having all of the fun."

Elsa grabbed her sister's arms and pinned them against the wall above her head. "Who said anything about playing fair?" she asked before diving back in to continue lavishing Anna's neck and chest. The redhead squirmed underneath her, arching her back to give Elsa better access.

"Please," Anna said, her arms weakly pulling against Elsa's grip. She bit her lip as the blonde trailed a row of kisses down the valley between her breasts, then whimpered as she pulled away.

Elsa released her sister's arms and leaned back. She yanked her dress down off of her shoulders and over her chest, laces be damned. Reaching back, she unhooked her bra and tossed it off to the side. She waited for Anna to come to her, but the redhead only sat back and stared at her in awe. "Come now," she said, "I don't bite."

Anna shook herself from her reverie and moved in to lavish Elsa's neck with attention. She slowly crept her hand up the blonde's side until she cupped a breast. Elsa moaned as her sister kneaded the soft flesh, her fingers slowly moving up to tease the nipple. She couldn't fully focus on the pleasure, though. Something itched at the back of her mind just as it had in her room. She tried to ignore it, but it refused to go away.

"An— _ah!_ " she cried as Anna tweaked her nipple. She gripped the redhead's shoulders, torn between pushing her away and pulling her tighter. The roiling lust racing through her veins threatened to overtake her, but she pushed through it. "Wait, Anna. St-stop."

Anna pulled back and looked up at Elsa, worry in her eyes. "Did I do something wrong? Did it not feel good?" she asked.

"No, no," Elsa said. "It felt _amazing_. I just—" She fell silent as a pair of voices floated over from deeper in the garden. The fire within her turned to ice instantly. "Someone's coming," she whispered harshly.

"In the bushes," Anna said. The blonde merely stared at her in confusion. "Get in the bush. Hide." She grabbed her sister by the shoulders and forcibly pushed her into the foliage. The twigs and branches scratched at her bare skin as she climbed in after her. "Don't move," she told Elsa once they were both concealed. "Not even if you think they see you. Don't move. Don't talk. Don't even breathe too loud." The blonde stared at her, a dozen questions swimming in her eyes. "I've… done this before," Anna explained meekly. She held a finger to her lips.

They waited in the bush as the voices drifted closer. After a time, a pair of guards rounded a corner and headed towards them. Elsa glanced at Anna, but the redhead was staring out at the approaching men. One of them barked a laugh. The guards drew closer and closer, until Elsa was sure that they would see her. But she kept still as Anna had told her. One of the men fell silent, followed shortly by the other.

"What is it?" the latter asked. He was a short, heavier man with a full bushy beard.

"Is that… a bra?" the taller, bald one asked.

Elsa felt her heart stop in her chest. It took every ounce of her self-restraint to keep from calling out, from ordering them to leave. A gentle touch alighted on her arm, and see turned slightly to see her sister looking at her reassuringly.

'It's okay,' she mouthed. 'Just wait.'

The bald guard picked up Elsa's bra from where it had landed on the side of the bush. "Looks like someone had a bit too much fun last night," he said.

" _Someone,_ eh?" the other one replied. "Did ya bring that tavern girl ya met last week out here last night?" He waddled over and dug an elbow into the bald one's side. "Just tryin' to show off?"

"Oh piss off, ya ruddy bastard," the tall one said. He threw the bra on the ground and strode off in long, fast steps.

"Slow down!" the hefty guard cried, hobbling after him. "Ya know I got short legs!" He followed after his partner and they disappeared around a corner.

Elsa let out a breath she didn't realize that she had been holding, then moved to leave the bush. The hand on her arm tightened, pulling her back. She glanced back at Anna, who shook her head and held up a finger. The redhead went back to staring out at the corner that the guards had turned. Their voices floated back for a few more seconds before completely fading away.

"Okay, we're clear," Anna said, climbing out of the bush. She offered a hand and helped Elsa climb out as well. "Now," she said, sliding an arm around her sister's waist. "Where were we?"

"Really?" Elsa asked. Their brush with being caught had quashed her arousal, but the lust in Anna's gaze was quickly rekindling it. The hand around her waist dipped down, digging under her dress to try and reach her butt.

"Not here," Elsa said. She darted in and nipped at Anna's bottom lip, then trailed a line of quick kisses up to her ear. "Tonight," she breathed. Her sister shivered under her, and she couldn't help the wicked grin that tugged at her lips. "Come to my chambers after it get dark. Make sure no one sees you." She stepped back, pausing for one more chaste kiss on the lips.

Anna gave an exaggerated pout as she let her hand fall away from Elsa's butt. She heaved a reluctant sigh and said, "Fine." She started pulling the top of her dress back on, but whipped around to look at the corner the guards had gone around. "I think they're coming back!"

Elsa nearly dove back into the bush, not even risking to stand back up once she was fully concealed. She waited for Anna to follow her, but she never did. After a few moments of silence, Anna burst out laughing. Elsa stormed out of the bush and glared at her. "That _wasn't_ funny," grumbled.

"Are you kidding?" Anna asked, sliding her dress back on. "Watching the Queen of Arendelle scramble into a bush half-naked; how is that _not_ hilarious?" She smiled confidently as Elsa strode over to her, stopping only when their faces were inches apart. A mischievous glint danced across Elsa's eyes. Before Anna could react, the blonde reached around her, pulled the back of her dress open, and dumped a blast of snow down her exposed back.

Anna jumped back. " _Cold! Cold! Cold!_ " she yelped. She pulled at her dress, but only succeeded in letting the snow pool around onto her stomach. " _Elsa!_ " she shrieked, "No fair. Make it stop."

Elsa chuckled into a hand, then waved the snow away. Her sister fixed her with a glare, but she just went back to pulling her dress back up. She was regretting her previous decision to yank it off, as it was proving much more difficult to put back on with the laces and zippers still tightened. "Come on," she told Anna, "we have dinner with the Governess of Trondheim tonight. I don't know about you, but I need a bath before then."

Anna's annoyance melted away in an instant. "A bath, hmm?" she asked. She sauntered closer to the blonde. "Maybe we could save time and share one."

Elsa trailed her fingers down her sister's neck and raked her nails over her still bare chest. "You incorrigible little minx," she murmured before nipping at the redhead's bottom lip. "Next time," she promised. "We both need to focus on getting ready to host the Governess, and I think that bathing together would have the opposite effect." She reached around and smacked Anna on the butt. "Now finish getting your dress back on."

Anna frowned as she slid her dress back up to her shoulders. "Curse you and your immaculate self-control," she muttered. She turned so that Elsa could tighten the laces across her back. "Do me up?" she purred.

Elsa deftly pulled the laces to tighten Anna's dress again, trying to ignore how easy it would be to loosen them instead and pull the dress back down. Once it was secured, she leaned in and kissed her sister's neck. The redhead ran her fingers through Elsa's hair and held her tight, letting out a soft moan.

"What was that about focusing on getting ready?" Anna asked. She gasped as Elsa's teeth raked over her thudding pulse. Just as she was getting worked up again, the blonde pulled away and began walking back to the castle. Anna whined piteously, reaching after her sister. "Elsaaa," she groaned. "That's not fair."

Elsa looked over her shoulder, smirking victoriously. " _All's_ fair in love and war, my dear," she said. "I'll see you at dinner." She blew Anna a kiss, then rounded a corner and disappeared from view.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Elsa stepped out of her bathroom, naked as the day she was born. She savored the cool air against her bare skin. The bath had refreshed her and her head was clear for the first time since Anna had suggested they have sex. The desire to ravage her sister until neither of them could walk was still there, but it was a slow smoldering heat rather than the raging inferno it had been earlier.

She walked into her closet to choose an outfit for the dinner. Normally, she wouldn't put more than a cursory thought into her attire for such a meeting, but teasing Anna in the gardens had been too much fun. They were both on edge, and she didn't want to pass up an opportunity to raise the tension just a touch more. _Nothing too scandalous_ , she thought. _Just enough to push her buttons._ She perused the racks of clothes until a glint caught her eye. She pulled out a thin black dress with silvery lace along the top.

 _When did I get this?_ She wondered. Shrugging, she brought it out of the closet and worked to put it on. The dress was smaller than she had initially thought, and the fabric caught on her butt when she tried to pull it up over her hips. She pulled on it a couple more times, frowning. "Come on," she grumbled. A few more solid tugs got the dress over her hips, and she easily slid it up the rest of the way. The zipper would have to wait until someone else could help her with it, but she went to see how she looked in the mirror.

"Oh, wow," she breathed when she saw herself. She could tell that the dress was snug, but that feeling didn't do justice to just how form-fitting it was. The fabric hugged her every curve as if it had been painted on. _I can see what Anna meant,_ she thought, twisting to get a better view her backside. The outline of her panties was faintly visible through the fabric. It wasn't something that someone would see unless they were looking for it. _But the point of this dress_ _ **is**_ _to get Anna to look._ she dug her fingers up under the skirt and slowly pulled her panties off, tossing them on the bed.

Elsa ran her hands up over her stomach. The dress was tight enough that there wasn't even the barest hint of a wrinkle or fold. She poked a finger into the soft curve of her abdomen. _You could probably see my abs… if I had any._

But the most eye-catching feature was definitely the chest. The neckline was very conservative, ending all the way up at her neck. However, a large swath of silvery lace spanned the distance from her neck down to where the black fabric stopped roughly halfway down the slope of her breasts. It was a good deal lower than anything she had worn to an official diplomatic meeting in the past. And while the lace "covered" her, it wasn't exactly difficult to see through. Elsa chewed her lip, unsure if the dress might be just a bit too much. Anna already took risks with their relationship, and she didn't want to push her _too_ far.

She leaned in to examine the lace more closely. _No bra, either._ Her mind flashed back to the garden, to teasing Anna about not wearing a bra under her own dress. She hemmed and hawed for a few moments, then nodded to herself.

 _All's fair in love and war._

Elsa left her room and made her way down to the dining room, pausing only briefly to ask a passing handmaiden to do up the zipper on her dress. Servants ducked out of her way as she passed as usual, but they stared after her once they felt she wasn't paying attention. Under normal circumstances, being the recipient of such attention would have made her anxious, perhaps even worried that something was wrong. But this time it was different. Whether they thought it was a welcome change or beneath her office as Queen, she knew that they watched her because she looked _good_.

Kai was waiting for her outside of the dining room as she approached. "Your Majesty," he said. He faltered for a moment when he turned to face her, but recovered and bowed. "Lady Valsdottir arrived early, so she and the Princess were seated a few minutes ago."

"That's quite alright," Elsa replied, waving away any potential apology. "I would have been down here quite some time ago, but…" She paused. Her dress had already caused quite a bit of hushed whispering, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to admit that she'd had chosen it specifically for that purpose. "I sat down to rest my eyes a moment and dozed off," she finished, smiling apologetically.

Kai gave a hearty laugh. "It happens to the best of us," he said, "even your father on occasion." He opened the door to the dining room and called out, "Her Majesty, Queen Elsa of Arendelle." Chairs scraped against the stone floor as the women inside stood. Elsa walked into the room, and she smiled to herself when Anna's jaw fell open.

"Good evening, Lady Valsdottir," she said as she approached her seat. "My apologies for keeping you waiting. I trust that my sister has been keeping you company." She pulled her chair out and sat down, but the other women stood frozen in place. "Is something the matter?" she asked.

The Governess recovered first, clearing her throat and taking her seat. "Forgive me, Your Majesty," she said. "I've heard stories of your beauty, but I confess myself woefully unprepared to experience it in person."

Elsa chuckled into a hand. "Truly, you flatter me, my Lady," she said. She glanced over at Anna, who finally flopped down into her seat. She turned back to the Governess. "But to the matter at hand. Your letter mentioned some concerns with the wildlife around Trondheim. What exactly is going on?"

* * *

Elsa closed the door to her room and leaned against it. She had to bite her lip to keep from giggling like a schoolgirl. The dinner had gone perfectly, even better than she had dared to hope. _Well, mostly,_ she thought, her mood dampening slightly. The Governess, or Alaya as Elsa had learned after having to say 'Valsdottir' one too many times, had requested to meet with her to discuss a rash of wolf attacks in her village. Apparently the cold snap of the 'Eternal Winter' had killed large swathes of vegetation, which had caused many of the small animals to die off. As a result, the local wolves were desperate and venturing as far as the borders of the town in search of food. Elsa had agreed to send a small contingent of soldiers to help patrol the area and protect the people, along with a generous amount of hardened leather bracers and steel daggers to protect and arm the people against the vicious animals.

However, after the rather somber start to the meal, things had picked up nicely. Alaya was extremely pleasant to talk to. After some time, and a few glasses of wine, it felt as though the Alaya was talking to her as Elsa, rather than the Queen. It was difficult to tell, and it may have just been the wine, but there were a few times that Elsa could have sworn Alaya was flirting with her. _Probably just my imagination,_ she thought. _Or the wine. Still, I'll have to find an excuse to invite her back._ She wiggled out of her dress. _And to wear this again._ She carefully draped the dress over the back of a chair and reflected on what a success it had been.

Anna had been unable to keep her eyes off of her. Every time that Elsa had glanced over, her sister's gaze had been glued to one part of her body or another, most often her butt. It had made things a bit awkward when she or Alaya addressed her, but it was nothing that she or Elsa couldn't cover up. The entire meal had been a welcome respite from the daily rigors of ruling, and it was something that she looked forward to doing again in the future.

But there was something that Elsa was anticipating much more eagerly. She walked over to the window, heedless of her nakedness. The sun had sunk below the horizon, but the last part rays of light still lit the sky. Soon those would be gone as well, and then…

 _Anna._

Elsa bit her lip. She was simultaneously excited and nervous, so much so that she couldn't bear to stand still. She paced around her room, searching for something to occupy her attention and keep her from glancing out the window every few seconds. She caught sight of herself in the mirror and paused. _Should I be wearing something?_ she wondered. On the one hand, it seemed silly to on clothes now when she and Anna would be ripping them off of one another soon. But on the other, actually getting to undress each other added to the anticipation and excitement.

Elsa looked around for something she could get dressed in before her sister arrived. She eyed the dress from dinner first. _A bit too challenging to get on and off,_ she thought. She headed over to her closet, but nothing inside really said 'sexy.' After a few moments of alternating panic and thought, inspiration struck. Elsa summoned her magic, then waved a hand to recreate the robe that she had made by accident earlier in the day. She moved back in front of the mirror to see how it looked.

 _Good,_ she thought, _but maybe…_ She used her magic to make a few alterations; she lengthened it a bit so that it actually covered her groin and made the whole thing slightly more opaque. _Better._ She smiled to herself, then sat facing the door to wait for Anna to arrive. Five minutes passed with no sign of her sister. Then ten minutes. Then fifteen.

By the time twenty minutes had passed, Elsa was pacing the room in a panic, leaving small footprints of frost with every step. "Where _is_ she?" she wondered aloud. Different scenarios whirled through her mind, each more horrifying than the last. _What if she changed her mind about sex? Or even worse, about_ _ **us**_ _?_ Deep down, she knew it was absurd, but every minute that passed without Anna walking through her door only served to let those fears take root deeper and deeper. She was debating sending someone to find the redhead, even if it would defeat the entire purpose of their plan. She was so wrapped up in her own mind that she didn't notice the door whisper open.

Anna slipped into the room, casting one last look outside before sliding the door shut. "Sorry I'm late," she said, "I just— Els?"

Elsa finally stopped pacing and finally noticed her sister's arrival. "Anna!" she cried, running over and pulling the redhead into a tight hug. "Where have you been?"

"Sorry," Anna replied. "I tried coming over three times, but your guards are _really_ good." She pulled back from the embrace and smiled apologetically. "I had to wait for night shift to come by and take over, then I snuck by while he and the day guard were talking." She brought a hand up and cupped the blonde's face. "But what's wrong? You looked really upset when I came in."

"I… It's nothing," Elsa said, leaning into her sister's hand. Anna gave her a look that said she didn't buy her dismissal. "I just… got worried when you didn't show up. I thought that maybe you had changed your mind about this… about us."

"Oh, Elsa," Anna murmured. She pulled the blonde back into the embrace, rubbing circles on her back. "How could you possibly think that? I've spent most of my life wanting to be closer to you. Do you really think that I would change my mind _now_?"

Elsa burrowed her face into Anna's neck, shame burning in her cheeks. "I know," she groaned. "I should have known better, but…" She trailed off, then sighed. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Anna replied. After a moment, she pulled back. "Now, where on Earth did you get _that?_ " She asked, motioning towards her sister's robe.

"I made it, actually," Elsa said. "Shocking as it may be to hear, nothing in my wardrobe qualifies as 'sexy,' so I had to improvise." She stepped back and did a little twirl. "What do you think?" The redhead's gaze moved up and down her body, and warmth flooded through her.

"It looks _great_ ," Anna said. "There's just one thing I would do to improve it." She stepped forward and slid her hands under the robe, sliding them along Elsa's shoulders so that it came open and fell to the ground. "I think it looks _much_ better on the floor." She dove in, peppering Elsa's neck with kisses and nibbles. Her hands wandered over the vast expanses of exposed skin.

"This ha-hardly seems fair," Elsa said. "Now I'm naked but _you_ still have all of your clothes on." She pawed at her sister's dress, but she couldn't undo the zippers while Anna was attacking her neck. A hand kneaded her breast, and she bit her lip to stifle a moan.

"Not fair, hmm?" Anna purred. "I seem to recall _someone_ being distinctly not fair earlier today." She kissed her way up to her sister's ear and whispered, "Just consider this a little well deserved payback." She teased Elsa's nipple on the last word, and the blonde grabbed onto her dress.

"Anna," Elsa whimpered as the redhead dipped down to kiss and lick her breast. "Please…" She wasn't sure exactly what she was asking of her sister, but she knew that she wouldn't last much longer in their current situation. Her legs were trembling so much that she worried they would give out on her. She laced her fingers through Anna's hair, both trying to pull her closer and keep herself upright.

"Mmm… okay," Anna said. She worked her way back up, trailing a line of kisses along Elsa's neck and up to her mouth. They locked lips in a heated and passionate kiss, but Anna had to push the blonde away as her hands started to wander. "Hey, now," she chided playfully. "At least let me get undressed too," she said, turning around.

Elsa leapt forward to remove her sister's dress. She yanked the zipper down and pulled the dress along with it. As it pooled to the floor, she could only stare at her sister's naked form. Anna smirked over her shoulder, then sauntered over to the bed and climbed on. She laid back, resting on her elbows, and beckoned the blonde with a finger. Elsa stumbled over her own feet in her haste to reach the bed, but she was at a loss of what to do once she was there. She admired Anna's body, but couldn't decide where to explore first. Anna made the decision for her, pulling her into a kiss and guiding her hand to a breast. She moved down to kiss along her sister's neck. Anna's breathing was harsh and erratic, and it gave Elsa a strange sense of pride that _she_ was the reason.

"Gods," Anna moaned. "Elsa, please." She gasped as the blonde nipped at her collarbone. "I've been thinking about you all day. I'm already so close. Just a little…" She writhed under Elsa's touch, her hips arching up off of the bed. Elsa moved her hand down, trailing fingernails over the redhead's stomach. She pushed lower and lower. Her hand glided over Anna's groin, but something was missing. She glanced down without interrupting her attack on her sister's chest. _No hair?_ She filed it away to ask about later, then dipped her hand down between Anna's legs. Her sister was dripping wet, and one pass along her vaginal lips coated Elsa's fingers in her juices. Anna let out a shuddering moan and thrust her hips against the blonde's fingers.

Elsa dove in, sinking two fingers deep into her sister. Anna bit her hand to stifle herself while Elsa worked up a steady rhythm with her fingers. She pressed hard, and Anna let out a pained hiss. "Are you okay?" Elsa asked.

"Fine," Anna panted. "Nails. Careful." She whined piteously and pulled Elsa closer. "Please don't stop." Elsa took her cue and got back to work. She worked her fingers in and out while her mouth went back to focusing on the redhead's breasts. She used the heel of her hand to rub against Anna's clit when she pushed in. Anna's moans and sounds slowly faded while Elsa kept up her work, and soon she was silent except for quick, harsh breaths. Elsa ploughed ahead; she was worried that maybe she was doing something wrong, but the nails digging into her back suggested otherwise.

Anna fell silent, even holding in her erratic breathing. The very air in the room was charged, and Elsa knew that her sister was close to… whatever it was that happens. She pushed just a bit harder, grazing Anna's nipple with her teeth and pressing her palm firmly against her clit. Without warning, Anna let out a long moan and her entire body convulsed. Her legs clamped shut around Elsa's hand, and the blonde could feel her vaginal walls pulsing around her fingers. She tried to keep going, but as the shaking faded Anna pushed her hand away.

"S-sorry," Anna said between heaving breaths. "Just… really sensitive." She flopped back on the bed, laying an arm over her eyes. "Gods, I don't think I've ever cum that hard before."

"So… it was good?" Elsa asked. She had a hard time imagining that it was anything but judging by Anna's reactions, but a little thread of worry still niggled at her mind.

" _Good?_ " Anna asked, her lips quirked up into a lopsided smile. She pulled the blonde into a long, slow kiss. When they broke apart, she nipped at Elsa's bottom lip and purred, "That was _amazing._ " She pushed forward until they rolled over and she was hovering over Elsa. "But now, it's your turn," she said, dipping down to kiss along her neck.

Elsa squirmed under her sister's attention. She threaded her fingers through Anna's hair as she dipped lower to lavish her breasts. Anna grazed her nipple with her teeth before kissing it, and Elsa had to bite her lip to keep from being too loud. Yet as wonderful as it felt to have Anna pamper her with her lips and tongue, she wanted more. She was more aroused than she could remember ever being. Her dripping sex ached for her sister's touch, but Anna's hands continued to tease and caress her chest. Elsa wanted to let her sister take her time exploring, but she wasn't sure how much more she could take before she would break down and beg Anna to fuck her.

Elsa was surprised when Anna went even lower, winding kisses across her stomach. Her surprise morphed into alarm as her sister kept going, climbing down and settling between her legs. _What is she-_ Elsa jumped as Anna kissed the inside of her thigh. She sat up on her elbows and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Umm… You?" Anna replied, smirking. Her smile faded and was replaced by confusion as the blonde just stared at her. "I mean, you got me off, so I was going to try and return the favor."

"With your… mouth?" Elsa asked.

"Yeah," Anna said, as if the idea were the most normal thing in the world.

Elsa hesitated. Letting Anna use her mouth down there seemed strange, but intriguing at the same time. Her arousal ultimately won out, and she agreed. "Okay," she said, laying back down. Anna went back to kissing her thighs, always near but never touching her vagina. Eventually, her sister stopped altogether. She was about to ask what was wrong when the redhead took a slow lick along the entire length of her slit. Elsa bit her hand to stifle a cry that would have been heard all throughout the castle.

Anna took that as her cue and dove in. She lapped at Elsa's vulva like a woman dying of thirst, occasionally plunging her tongue inside. She probed deep before coming back out to lick all around the blonde's labia and darting up to tease her clit. Elsa grabbed the sheet to keep from thrashing around too harshly, but Anna's attack on her sex threatened to completely overwhelm her. She felt fingers push into her while her sister's mouth moved up to focus on her clit. Just as she had that afternoon, Elsa felt like she was moving towards something, but Anna had her barreling towards it rather than slowly working there herself. Her entire body felt taut, like a great spring was twisting and coiling in her gut. It wound tighter and tighter, until she was sure that she was go to break. She grabbed her sister's head, grinding herself against Anna's face and tongue.

Without warning, the spring snapped. Waves of ecstasy pulsed through Elsa's body, and she loosed a guttural cry before grabbing a pillow to muffle herself. She twitched and spasmed as the waves spread from her core outward, slowly growing weaker with each pulse. Her sister kept going between her legs, but the feeling was too much for her to bear so soon after her release. She pushed Anna away, then flopped back on the bed, panting. The redhead crawled up the bed and nestled down against her side.

"Good?" Anna asked playfully. In response, Elsa pulled her into a sloppy kiss. She could taste herself on Anna's tongue. It was an unusual flavor, but not an unpleasant one.

" _Incredible,_ " Elsa said when they broke apart. She settled down on the bed, sleep washing over her after the last vestiges of her orgasm faded. The redhead's hands traced random lines over her stomach, and she let out a contented sigh.

"I love you, Els," Anna murmured, laying her head on the blonde's chest.

"I love you, too, Anna."

* * *

Down in the servant's quarters, Kai sat in one of a pair of overstuffed chair. He stared into the embers of what was once a roaring fire. The door behind him opened, and Gerda slipped into the room carrying a tray with two mugs of tea. She set the tray on the table between the chairs before settling into the empty one.

"So which one is it this time?" she asked.

"Elsa," Kai replied, tearing his gaze away from the fireplace. He noticed the mugs and took one, nodding his thanks to the headmistress. He took a sip before continuing. "She's been receiving a number of… rather personal letters from the various princes that have been visiting. For the most part, she's seemed… uninterested. But today…" he sighed and lapsed into silence, seeming to search for the right words.

"Her, too?" Gerda asked, grabbing her own mug of tea. "I figured you were worrying about the Princess." She furrowed her brow when Kai looked at her questioningly. "Don't pretend like you haven't noticed," she chided. "Anna has been practically skipping through the castle for the last month or so." She stopped herself when Kai chuckled and fixed him with a look. "You know what I mean," she replied to kai's unspoken rebuttal. "She's practically glowing. Radiant in a way she hasn't ever been before."

Kai finally nodded. "Yes, I've noticed it, too. To be frank, I simply took it as her being glad that she and Elsa were reunited, but Anna does seem to have fallen for someone." He glanced over. "Now the question becomes _who_ this mystery man is. Or perhaps, who these mystery _men_ are?"

"Well, whoever he is, he's got Anna well and truly smitten," Gerda said. "I found her down in the kitchens yesterday daydreaming away. When I snapped her out of it, she started asking about how she, or rather a _hypothetical_ girl—" She smiled and rolled her eyes. "—would know when to make her relationship more _physical_."

"Is that so?" Kai asked. "Just this afternoon, I… stumbled upon Elsa having issues trying to… pleasure herself."

" _Oh_ ," Gerda said. She stared down into her mug for a few moments. It struck her as odd that both women would be delving into aspects of physical intimacy so close to one another, almost too much to be coincidental. "You don't think that…" she started before falling silent. The idea running through her mind was outlandish, but it was the most logical explanation. "You don't think that they're experimenting… with _each other_ , do you?"

Kai stared at the headmistress for a moment, then looked back to the smoldering embers. After a time, he said, "I don't think so. Even as children, Anna would always run after her older sister and try to do what she was doing. If I had to guess, I would say that Elsa told the Princess about her mysterious suitor and now she's simply trying to find her own." He took a pull from his mug, then asked, "You don't suppose it's that Kristoff fellow, do you?"

"I doubt it," Gerda replied. "They spent some time together after the whole… winter debacle, but he had to be gone for his ice harvesting too often. They still visit when he's in the city, but that's about it nowadays." She smiled over the rim of her mug. "Though, I suppose it shouldn't be too hard to find out."

"And how do you plan to do that?" Kai asked. "I believe that spying on the Queen or Princess is an offense punishable by hanging."

"It wouldn't be _spying_ ," Gerda countered. "We're their most trusted advisors, after all. We'd just be… trying to keep a bit closer eye on them. See if they slip off somewhere without letting anyone know." She waved off a raised eyebrow from Kai. "We don't have to follow them or know who they're meeting with, just know that they left."

"Well, I suppose that it couldn't hurt." Kai said. "But if we get caught, I'm telling Her Majesty that it was _your_ idea."

* * *

Elsa heard quick steps creeping up behind her while she walked down the hall toward her study. She knew it was Anna, but she pretended not to notice until she got closer. She waited until her sister was right behind her before saying, "Hello, Anna."

"Aww…" Anna moaned. She draped her arms around Elsa's stomach and rested her chin on the blonde's shoulder. "I thought I had you that time. How do you always do that?"

"I just listen for the sound of a clumsy reindeer and assume that it's you trying to be sneaky," Elsa replied. She looked around to make sure that they were alone, then leaned into her sister's embrace. Even after the months of them being together, she still found solace in something as basic as Anna's arms around her. The redhead turned and started kissing her neck, holding her in place when she tried to pull away. " _Anna,_ " she chided playfully. She glanced up and down the hallway, allowing herself the briefest moment to enjoy the attention. Then she leaned away and whispered, "not here."

"Why not?" Anna asked. "What's life without a little risk?" She grinned as she nuzzled and kissed the crook of her sister's neck. "Besides, there's no one around."

"We still need to be careful. Especially since—"

Anna released her sister let out a resigned sigh. " _Again_ , Els?" she asked, exasperation laced through her voice. "We've been over this. You're being paranoid. No one is—" A soft hand pressed against her mouth cut her off. The Queen took her by the hand and pulled her into a room off of the hallway. It was dark and dusty, but the furnishings suggested that it had once been used as a sitting room.

Elsa closed the door, then erected a jagged pane of ice in front of it; a trick to help seal in sound that she had picked up after learning just how loud Anna could be in bed. Once it was in place, she turned back to her sister. "I am _not_ being paranoid," she said firmly.

"Really?" Anna asked. "Because you just pulled us out of an _empty_ hallway to come in here and talk about how you think _our own servants_ _are spying on you._ "

Elsa winced. When it was put like that, it certainly did sound paranoid. "I know that it sounds ridiculous, but they _are_ ," she said. She started pacing around the room, nervous energy that had been building for days finally given release. "Ever since we started sleeping together, they've… I don't know. Maybe 'spying' is too harsh, but it feels like they've been watching us much more closely than before. Haven't you noticed?"

"No," Anna replied. "But even if they _are_ watching us, isn't that part of their job?"

Elsa deliberated silently for a moment. "Okay. Maybe I _am_ being a little paranoid," she said. "But it feels different now. They're not just watching to see if I need anything. It's… deeper than that, especially with Kai." She sat down on a long empty couch, sending up a small cloud of dust. "He's always had a knack for being there exactly when I need him, but he's been almost clingy recently. It seems like he's there every time I turn around, but most of the time he's disappearing around a corner, like he didn't want me to notice him."

"Okay, let's assume that you're right for a moment," Anna said. She sat down next to her sister, who had buried her face in her hands. " _Why_ would they be doing that? What would be the point?"

Elsa looked up, the worry in her face replaced with fear. "What if… they know?" she asked. "What if we weren't as careful as we thought and they've found out about us?"

"I doubt it," Anna replied. "Do you really think that something like that would stay hidden for more than five minutes? If we got caught, I doubt we would have time to get our clothes back on before half of the city knew about it." Her sister didn't seem convinced, but an idea struck her. "You know what you need? A break."

Elsa thought about it for a moment. "A break, hmm?" she asked. "Just how do you propose that we do that?"

" _We_ don't," Anna said. " _You_ do. You can take a day to… do something fun. Oh! You could take a trip out to Trondheim and visit Alaya. I'll take care of the kingdom for a day while you're gone, and it will let you clear your head."

"I don't know," Elsa said. "It sounds nice, but—"

"No 'buts!'" Anna said, cutting the blonde off. "I'll have Kai send a messenger this afternoon, we'll pack some essentials tonight, and you can leave in the morning. You can head out there and be back by nightfall."

"Assuming I still have a kingdom to come back to by then," Elsa said playfully. She smiled for a moment, but it faded and she sighed. "I suppose it couldn't hurt, though. You sure that you'll be okay here?"

"Absolutely," Anna replied. "How much could go wrong in one day?"

* * *

The next morning, Anna saw her sister off to Trondheim before setting to work. She had meant every word she'd said about Elsa needing a break from the rigors and stresses of ruling, but she'd had an ulterior motive as well. She would execute her responsibilities faithfully, but she wanted to experience things from her sister's perspective. Once she had, she was sure that she would know how to convince Elsa that all of her worries were just in her head.

Anna kept herself on schedule to start. She held Open Court in Elsa's place, though she spent more time than she wanted to admit lost in her own thoughts while someone was petitioning the Crown. Luckily, Kai was on hand to discreetly summarize what she had missed. _I don't know why Elsa's worried about him,_ Anna thought while waiting for another self-aggrandizing noble to approach the throne. _He's a godsend._

Once Court was done, she had a meeting with the Royal Council. Anna took the opportunity to shake things up. She left the throne room, but went the opposite way of the Council chamber. Kai watched her go, but made no move to follow her. She took a long, meandering route to the meeting, arriving a few minutes late. The Council had already begun the meeting in her absence, but they happily filled her in on what little she had missed. The councillors mainly deliberated amongst themselves, only seeking out Anna's opinion on occasion. She didn't mind, however, because she was only vaguely aware of most of the issues that they were discussing. After a time, Kai entered the room. He seemed confused or at a loss for a moment, but perked up in surprise when he saw Anna. The redhead took note while she pretended to listen to… whoever was talking now.

Anna suffered through the rest of the meeting, her eyes occasionally flitting to Kai. He seemed almost a statue, giving nothing away in his expression or bearing. She thought that she caught him watching her, but it was always too quick for her to be sure. As the meeting came to a close, the door opened and Anna heard Gerda's voice from the other side. She couldn't hear what was said, but Kai spoke to her only for a moment before the door closed again. Chairs scraped across the floor as members of the Council stood up, pulling the redhead from her thoughts. She stood up as well and made her way out of the room. There was nothing on her schedule until after lunch, so she wanted to take some time to mix things up. She stopped by her room to grab a cloak, then made her way to the front doors of the castle. The massive doors were in sight when Gerda came up from behind her.

"Your Highness!" Gerda called. Her eyes flashed down to the cloak, but her gentle smile didn't waver. "I've been looking all over for you. We got another shipment of those German chocolates that you like so much. I thought that you might want to get a few before they get put away and you have to go searching for them."

Anna chewed her lip. She loved those chocolates almost as much as she loved Elsa, but she was a woman on a mission. "I would," she said, "but I'm… busy. I have to… do something important… for Elsa." She wrung her hands hidden under the cloak. "Could you put a few aside for me to come get later?"

"Oh don't you worry," Gerda replied. "I'll have some taken up to your room. Now, don't let me keep you any longer."

Anna turned, threw the cloak around herself, and headed out the door. Yet as she walked, something about Gerda nagged at her. Anna had never made her love of all things chocolate a secret, German or otherwise, but Gerda had never tracked her down to tell her about them. If anything, the older woman usually kept them hidden so that they could be a pleasant surprise later. The redhead glanced back, and a cold knot formed in her stomach when she saw Gerda watching her cross the courtyard from a window. Anna did her best to appear casual, but every step was a fight to keep from sprinting out of the gates. Once she was around the corner, she threw herself against the wall. She took a few deep breaths to try and calm herself, but her heart continued to thunder in her chest.

 _Get a hold of yourself,_ she chided herself. _This is exactly what Elsa is doing._ Though as she tried to downplay the situation, she had to admit that she could understand her sister's position now. Anna edged closer to the gateway and peered through a space between the wall and the open door. It took her a moment to find the window Gerda had been watching her from. When she finally did, dread gripped her. Kai had joined Gerda in the window while the latter motioned out towards the gate and shrugged. The former looked out across the courtyard, causing the Princess to duck back away from the gap.

Anna turned and ran. She wasn't sure where she was going, but she needed to get away from the castle. Her mind whirled and pulled in a dozen different directions while she reached the edge of the city and began weaving between people. She finally came to a stop in front of a small, shabby house near the industrial center of the city. It wasn't painted, giving it an abandoned, almost unfinished feel. Anna had repeatedly tried to get the owner to fix it up a bit, but he could never see the point for a place that he only stayed at a few nights a week. She just hoped that last night had been one of those nights. She knocked on the door, but no answer came.

"Kristoff?" she called out, knocking a second time. "It's me. Are you h— _oh!_ " She was surprised when the door opened to reveal a slender woman with brown hair and eyes. "Um… hi?" Anna said. The woman stared at her for a moment before recognizing her and dropping into a hasty curtsey. Anna checked the house again to make sure she was at the right one, asking, "Is Kristoff here?"

As if he'd been summoned, Kristoff poked his head out from a side room. "Hey, Anna," he said. He came over to the door, smiling despite the obvious discomfort of his female companion. "I didn't know you were coming by today."

"It was kind of a spur of the moment decision," Anna replied. She glanced at the woman, who was awkwardly staring at the floor. "But if you're busy, I can go. I don't want to interrupt."

"Hmm?" Kristoff muttered, confusion flashing over his face. Recognition followed a moment later. "Oh, right, sorry." He motioned to the woman. "This is Brigida. Her father sells produce in the city and she just stopped by to drop off some carrots for Sven." He placed his hand on her shoulder. "Thanks again for that. The big guy wouldn't shut up about it when I forgot to get some yesterday."

"It's no problem," Brigida replied, looking up at him. Her disquiet vanished, and she actually smiled warmly at him. "But I don't want to hear from him that you ate them all without sharing again." She turned back to the Princess and her comfort evaporated again. "Beg your pardon, Your Highness," she said before skirting around Anna and heading down the street towards the market.

Anna watched Brigida leave, noticing that she turned and glanced back at the house before turning a corner. "She likes you," she said bluntly. The ice cutter sputtered, seeming to choke on air. "Aww, you like her, too!" she teased.

Kristoff cleared his throat, scrambling to change the subject. "Did you need something?" he asked.

Anna's playful smile disappeared, and it was her turn to stare awkwardly at the floorboards. "Um, yeah," she said. "Can we talk?"

Kristoff stepped aside and motioned for her to come inside. "Alright, feistypants. Get in here and spit it out." He closed the door and followed the redhead into the living room, grabbing dirty clothes that had been strewn across the furniture. After he threw them into his bedroom, he sat down in a chair and watched the Princess pace by the wall. "So, what's up?"

"Kai and Gerda are watching me," Anna blurted out, not even breaking stride in her pacing.

Kristoff waited for a moment, assuming that some kind of follow up or explanation was coming, but none did. "So… they're... doing... their jobs?" he asked.

"No, well… kind of," Anna replied. "But it's more than that. It's-" She stopped and pressed a hand to her face. _I owe Elsa such a big apology…_ She pushed past her stewing guilt and kept going. "They're not watching _the Princess_ to make sure that I have everything I need to fulfill my duties. They're watching me, _Anna_ , to see what I'm doing when I'm _not_ performing my duties."

"Mm hmm," Kristoff hummed. "Do you have any idea _why_ they would be watching you?" The redhead looked off to the side, wringing her hands. "Alright, so what is it?"

Anna opened her mouth, but she wasn't sure what to say. The truth was out of the question, but she also didn't trust herself to try and improvise a reason. "I… can't tell you," she said after a time.

The ice cutter raised an eyebrow, but didn't press the issue. "Have you talked to Elsa about it?" he asked.

"No," Anna replied. "She's got enough on her plate." She felt a twinge of regret about having to lie to Kristoff, but she couldn't risk him figuring anything out. If Kai or Gerda had cottoned onto something, anything, they had kept it to themselves. For now at least. Kristoff, for all of the kind and funny that he was, wasn't exactly as trustworthy. Not that she wanted anyone to know what she wanted to do to her sister.

Kristoff, rubbed a hand along his jaw, scratching along the stubble growing there. "Why haven't you talked to them about it?" he asked. "If you know why they're watching you, why not just go to them? Why come to _me_?"

"I…" Anna started to reply before trailing off. The longer she talked to Kristoff, the more she realized she had no idea what to say. She wanted to just tell him the truth just to get it off of her chest, but she knew that was impossible. "I can't tell you."

Kristoff treated her to a crooked grin. "Is there anything you _can_ tell me?" he asked. "Or is that something you can't tell me either?" The Princess glared at him, but he just shrugged. "I don't know what you want from me, Anna. You're asking me for advice, but I you won't tell me anything except that you think Kai and Gerda are watching you." He leaned back in the chair and put his feet up on the edge of the table. "Seems to me that your only options are to either ignore it or talk to them."

Anna pursed her lips. Neither option was particularly desirable, and they weren't anything that she needed help to come up with. _Then again, I didn't exactly give him a lot to work with._ She sat down on the back of the couch. "Yeah," she murmured. "Sorry about that. I just… kind of panicked when I saw them watching me leave the castle, and you were the first person I thought to come talk to." She sucked in a deep breath, then blew it out in a huff. "Well, I should probably get back to the castle before they get worried. Sorry again about just showing up uninvited."

"It's all good," Kristoff said, waving off her apology. He stood up and opened the door for the redhead. "Just happy to help, I guess."

"Say hi to Sven for me," Anna said as she passed him. "And good luck with Brigida."

"There's nothing go on!" Kristoff shot back. Color crept up his neck while he fixed the Princess with an annoyed glare.

"Uh huh," Anna replied, smirking. He sputtered for a moment, then closed the door. She giggled to herself as she set off back towards the castle. Her buoyed mood started to dip again as she crossed the courtyard and made her way through the doors. She quickly made her way back to her room and slipped in, throwing her cloak on the bed. She sat down in front of her vanity, a finger tapping against her lips while she stewed in her thoughts.

The walk back from Kristoff's house had given her time to think, and her overactive mind had calmed down some. Yes, she had seen Gerda watching her and talking to Kai afterwards, but it had only been when she had been _trying_ to be conspicuous and had left the castle without warning. Throughout the rest of the day, nothing unusual had happened. She had seen them around, but that was just part and parcel of living in the same place.

Anna laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. _It's been that way for years,_ she thought as she kicked her feet. _Then again, Elsa's new to the whole not-being-locked-away thing. I'm sure she'll get used to it._ The bells out in the city tolled to signal the arrival of a new hour. Before the sound could even fade away, a knock sounded from her door. "Yes?" she called.

"Lunch is served in the eastern dining room, Your Highness," Kai said, his voice muffled by the thick oaken door.

"Thank you, Kai," Anna replied. She stretched out, savoring the comfort of her bed for a few more precious seconds. It was only noon, but she was ready to just retire for the day. "Being Queen is exhausting," she moaned. On one hand, she was glad that she had given Elsa a day to escape her responsibilities, but on the other, she was ready for her sister to return and take up the mantle of ruling again.

She hopped up from the bed and ran her hands through her hair. "Just a few more hours," she muttered. Her bangs flopped back down into her eyes and she blew them out of the way. With a quick once over to make sure that her dress hadn't gotten _too_ wrinkled between her excursion to town and flopping onto her bed, she headed out to tackle the rest of the day. Her stomach growled as she closed the door behind her.

 _Well, lunch first. Then the rest of the day._


	4. Chapter 4

Anna was sitting in Elsa's study, reading over a letter from the leader of the Fisherman's Guild for the third time. Each time she reached the end, she realized that she had no idea what the letter had said. She glanced out the window for the second time in as many minutes. The sky was ablaze in hues of red and orange, but Anna couldn't focus on the beauty of the sunset. Elsa had planned to be back from Trondheim slightly before dinner, but that had been nearly two hours ago. Anna knew that her sister could take care of herself, but she wasn't one to be late.

Anna tossed the letter onto the desk, abandoning the pretense of trying to read it. She pondered if there was any way to figure out where her sister was. The best option was Kai, but she didn't exactly want to run to him about Elsa if she could avoid it. _Maybe she sent a messenger with word, but who would have-_

The groan of metal and wood drifted through the open window. Anna rushed to it and leaned out, trying to peer around the corner of the castle to see the front gate. She couldn't quite see it, but she heard the clop of hooves and the clatter of wheels over the stones leading up to the castle. She dashed back across the room and out the door, skirting around servants and narrowly avoiding collisions until she reached the grand entryway to the castle.

The doors opened, and Anna couldn't help the grin that split her face as she saw Elsa walking in. She wanted to run over and sweep her sister up in a hug, but she hung back and waited impatiently. As she watched, she noticed that something was off. Elsa's normally graceful walk was a bit unsteady, and she swerved a little while she made her way inside. Her face was flushed and her normally serene smile was more vivacious.

"Anna!" Elsa cried, her already radiant smile growing even brighter. She pulled her sister into a tight hug. "I'm sorry that I'm late," she said once they had separated. "I hope I didn't worry you too much."

"Not at all," Anna replied. She held out her arm and her sister linked hers through it. "I assume that you had a good time?" she asked as they started to walk down the hallway. There was something abnormal about the Queen, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She had caught a faint whiff of something during their hug, but she'd been too distracted to place it.

"Oh, yes," Elsa said as they turned a corner. "Thank you again for taking over so that I could get away for a bit." She glanced around, then pushed Anna up against the wall and pressed their lips together in a heated kiss. After they separated, she leaned in and whispered, "Maybe I can show you just how much I appreciated it when we get to my room."

"I… uh…" Anna murmured. The sudden kiss had thrown her off, and she didn't get a chance to recover before Elsa kissed her again. There was a sweetness on her tongue with a familiar sting underneath it. They reluctantly pulled apart and continued down the hallway. "Have you been drinking?"

"No," Elsa replied, though a flush spread up her neck as they walked. She chewed on her lip for a moment before confessing. "Maybe just a bit while we were waiting for lunch to be served… And during lunch… And one more glass while she gave me a tour of her home." She hung her head, glancing over at Anna.

For her part, Anna couldn't help but giggle. "What's that face for?" she asked. "I'm not your mother. You're not in trouble." She leaned over and kissed her sister's cheek. "Besides, the entire point of the trip was so that you could relax and have a little fun. It sounds like you did just that." As they rounded another corner, Elsa squeezed her butt and made her jump a bit. "What's gotten into you?" she asked.

"Nothing compared to what's about to get into _you_ ," Elsa replied, grinning. Anna fought the heat rising up her neck and held her sister's gaze. After a moment, the blonde giggled. "It's nothing, really. I just talked to Alaya about our… predicament, and she—"

"You told her about us?" Anna asked. She knew they were alone, but she couldn't repress a quick glance up and down the hallway.

"No," Elsa said. She furrowed her brow for a moment. "Well, kind of… but not really, though. At dinner, she noticed I was a little stressed and she asked what was wrong. I had already had a bit to drink and it just kind of… slipped out." She ducked her head again. "I told her that you were a stable boy the Horsemaster had recently hired."

"Found something you wanted to ride more than the horses, huh?" Anna said, nudging her sister. She giggled as Elsa's face reddened. "Well, if it helped you feel better about all of this, then I guess I can't complain."

They reached Elsa's room, and Anna barely had time to make it through the door before she was pushed up against the wall and the blond attacked her. Elsa's lips roamed over her neck, while her hands nearly tore at the fabric of her dress.

"At least let me get the door first," Anna chided playfully. She managed to push the door shut, but the lock was just out of her reach and her sister had her pressed firmly against the wall. She tried to push forward a bit, but Elsa held her still and increased the intensity of her affections. The familiar ember in Anna's gut sputtered to life, and she knew that she would be overtaken by lust if she didn't act soon. Elsa's hand snuck under her skirt and brushed the edge of her panties. Anna laced her fingers through her sister's hair and pulled back so that their eyes met. "Bed," she growled, "now."

Elsa was all too happy to oblige, leaning in for one last kiss before racing off to the bed. Anna rubbed her hands over her face. Even after being together for some time, it still surprised her how easily Elsa could get her going. Anna set off after her sister, reaching back to work on the laces keeping her dress up. When she reached the bed, a naked Elsa pawed at her clothes.

"Just gimme a second," Anna said, chuckling. "We can't all just _wave_ our clothes away like some people." She managed to get her dress down off of her shoulders, and Elsa leaned in to lavish attention on her breasts. Anna wove her fingers into the blonde's hair and let out a moan, her eyes fluttering shut.

 _The lock._

She glanced over her shoulder at the closed, but unlocked door. She chewed her lip for a moment, then turned back to her sister. _Fuck it,_ she thought. _No one bothers Elsa once she's retired for the night._ She pulled Elsa's head back, leaning down for a kiss before pushing her over onto her back. She quickly finished getting out of her dress, then knelt down between Elsa's legs.

 _Well,_ _ **almost**_ _no one._

* * *

Elsa pored over the expense reports from the past year that Kai had brought her. Each one was off. The total monthly expenditures were half of a percent lower than the total amount of removed from the treasury every month. It was a small enough amount to not be overly worrisome, but consistent enough that it couldn't be a coincidence.

There was a soft knock at the door, and Elsa looked up, curious. She wasn't expecting anyone. She glanced at the clock. _That late already? Kai must have sent some tea._ "Come in," she called, going back to the report. The door whispered open. "Just set it over there, thank you."

"You might want to sample this while it's hot, _Your Majesty_ ," a familiar voice said.

Elsa grinned. "Oh, and why might that—" The words died on her lips as she looked up. Anna was standing across the desk, clad in a long leather riding coat. And the light sheen of sweat on her face suggested she hadn't picked it for comfort. " _What_ are you wearing?" Elsa asked.

"Oh, nothing much," Anna replied. She shrugged and the coat slid off of her shoulders, revealing her nude form underneath. Elsa's mouth fell open. A week had passed since her impromptu trip to Trondheim, but both she and Anna had been so busy since then that they had barely had time to talk to one another, much less spend any quality time alone. Clearly, the lack had gotten to her sister.

 _Not that she's the only one_ , she thought. Small pinpricks of warmth swirled through her gut as her eyes roved over Anna's body. Elsa swallowed, glued to her chair as Anna slowly walked around the table. "We shouldn't…" she said weakly.

"Oh?" Anna purred. "Is the Queen just _so_ busy that she can't spare five minutes for her poor, lonely little sister?" She gave a fake pout and crossed her arms over her stomach, pressing her breasts together.

Elsa took a deep breath through her nose to try and calm herself, but she caught a whiff of Anna's arousal as the redhead crept ever closer. The last vestiges of her resolve crumbled away. "I've never known you to be satisfied with _just_ five minutes."

Anna grinned triumphantly. "Well," she said as she straddled Elsa's lap, "I suppose that'll be up to you now, won't it?" She wrapped her arms around Elsa's neck and pulled the blonde into a heated kiss.

Elsa sat frozen for a moment, her senses overwhelmed by her sister's sudden closeness. The heat of Anna's skin seeped through her clothes and her taste danced across her lips. Her hands flexed indecisively against Anna's hips, unsure of where she should touch. Anna ground her hips against Elsa's lap, whining needily into their kiss. Elsa took the hint, snaking a hand between her sister's legs. She easily slid two fingers into Anna's dripping wet center. The redhead finally broke their kiss so that she could bite her lip to stifle a moan. Elsa took advantage of her freedom and wove a trail of kisses down Anna's neck, peppering in some nips as she passed over her collarbone. Anna tangled her fingers in Elsa's hair, pulling her closer while she continued to grind against Elsa's hand.

Elsa continued working her way lower, grazing her teeth over a stiff nipple before taking it into her mouth. Even though they had only just started, Anna's breathing was already sharp and ragged. _Maybe five minutes was too long,_ Elsa thought to herself wryly. She pushed her fingers a little deeper, worked her tongue a little faster, and savored the sweet symphony of pleasure that she was pulling from her sister's body. She could tell Anna was getting close. Anna's hushed moans and gasps grew quiet, leaving the work of Elsa's fingers as the only sound breaking the silence.

 _Knock. Knock. Knock._

The girls froze, neither daring to even breathe. For a brief moment, Elsa prayed that they had both heard the same illusory sound.

"Your Majesty?" A muffled voice called from the far side of the door. "Please forgive the intrusion, but I wondered if you might have a moment to talk."

Elsa tried to swallow, but it felt as though her throat had sealed shut. She sat back to meet Anna's gaze. 'Lock?' she mouthed. Her sister nodded. Elsa's mind raced, but only one option presented itself. "Under the desk," she whispered. Anna scrambled down from Elsa's lap and huddled beneath the desk. Elsa stood and took a deep breath to try and steady herself. She strode over to the door and gently turned the lock. She was about to open it when she noticed several noticeably damp spots on her skirt.

"Come in," Elsa called as she walked back to the desk. She sat down, taking extra care in scooting her chair forward. The door opened and Alexi Karloff made his way in. "Ah, Duke Karloff," Elsa said, smiling. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Thank you for seeing me unannounced, Your Majesty," Alexi said, giving a slight bow. "There was something said during the last Council meeting that I wished to discuss with you."

Elsa fought the urge to roll her eyes. Every time that Alexi want to 'discuss' something with her, she had trouble getting a single word in. As the Duke started talking, Elsa felt Anna's hands digging under her skirt and slowly moving along her legs. Fingertips danced up and down her legs, sending shivers up her spine each time they crept a little higher. She kept her gaze on Alexi, who she could tell was gearing up for a long-winded speech. She knew it was a terrible idea, that they had far too much to risk. But Anna's surprise visit had gotten her incredibly worked up before the Duke arrived, and the idea of doing something so naughty while someone else was there in the room with them—none the wiser—was tantalizing.

Elsa's libido overpowered her reason, and she spread her legs wider under the desk. The hands teasing her legs moved higher, skimming the inside of her thighs. Fingers traced further and further until they could trace the edge of her panties. Elsa bit the inside of her lip to try and keep her face neutral and her breathing under control. Anna's fingers rubbed down underneath Elsa's legs, pressing just hard enough to part her vaginal lips. The fabric pressed and rubbed against her, and it was growing increasingly difficult to keep up the pretense of paying attention to Alexi. Elsa couldn't slouch down or move forward enough for Anna's mouth to reach her nethers, but she felt Anna's lips winding a trail of kisses along the inside of her thigh where she could reach.

Elsa gasped as Anna's fingers pushed her panties to the side and slid between her folds. Alexi faltered for a moment in his monologue, watching the Queen to see if she wanted to comment. Elsa kept still, hoping that he might forget it happened and start talking again. The moment of silence stretched while his gaze lingered on her. She tried to recall anything the Duke had said, but Anna's movements were making it extremely difficult for her to focus. "I'm sorry," she said, "Could you repeat that last part?"

"Of course, Your Majesty," Alexi said. His brow furrowed for a moment, but then went back to pacing the room as he spoke. "As I was saying, the German delegation was insistent, but Duchess Haskaal and I managed to…"

Elsa quickly lost any attention that the Duke had garnered as Anna brought her thumb up to press against her clit. She bit her tongue against the surge of pleasure that raced out from her core. Anna's fingers built up a steady rhythm. Elsa felt her orgasm building and coiling in her gut. _That's far enough,_ she thought, only to realize that she didn't know how to get Anna to stop. She squeezed her legs together, but that only served to trap her sister's arm between them. Anna leaned against her legs, and Elsa could feel her breath coming in quick short puffs against her thigh. The fingers buried inside Elsa moved faster, almost frantically. Anna pressed harder against her legs, shaking. _Oh gods, is she…_

Elsa brought a hand to her mouth to cover her erratic breathing. Unfortunately, it was the hand that she had used to pleasure Anna earlier. She could still smell her sister's wetness on her fingers, and it was enough to push her over the edge. Waves of pleasure pulsed out through her body, and she quickly feigned a coughing fit to mask her convulsions.

"Your Majesty! Are you alright?"

She put up a hand, thankful that the Duke froze in his approach to her desk. She took a moment to steady her breathing, then gave her best smile. "I'm quite well, thank you," she said. "But it seems that something I had for lunch didn't agree with me. I'm afraid that I'll need to cut our discussion short." She paused for a moment as Anna's arm slowly withdrew from between her legs. "If you would, please compile a summary of your and the Duchess' plan, and I'll review it before the next Council meeting."

Alexi watched her for a few seconds, clearly confused. "Of course, Your Majesty," he said, dipping into a light bow. "I pray that you—" he paused for an instant, his eyes locked on the floor. "—feel better soon," he finished. He turned and pulled the door open. Before leaving, he glanced back one last time. His eyes lingered on Elsa, then he quickly ducked out of the room.

Elsa buried her face in her hands and resisted the urge to scream, settling for a groan instead. " _Anna_ ," she growled as she pushed her chair away from the desk.

"So, do you want to stay in the chair, or should we clear off the desk?" Anna asked, grinning from ear to ear.

Elsa could only stare at her sister in disbelief. "Seriously?" she asked.

Anna shrugged. "Why not?" she replied. "Alexi's gone. Just lock the door again and lose that dress. If anyone else comes by, just tell them you're not feeling well and send them away."

Elsa groaned again. While the idea sounded appealing thanks to her sister's infectious enthusiasm, she had other duties to attend to first. "I can't," she said, "I've got too much on my plate right now. But I promise we'll get to spend some time together tonight after dinner." She moved her chair back further. "Now come on. Out."

"I don't know," Anna said. "It's pretty warm and cozy down here, and it's got a _great_ view." She grinned and wiggled her eyebrows.

"Is it, now?" Elsa replied, smirking. She flicked her hand, sending a small wave of magic under the desk. Snow and icy wind swirled in the confined space, spilling up Anna's backside and causing her to jump.

" _Yah! Cold! Cold!_ " Anna cried. She scrambled out from her hiding place. She frantically brushed her hands along her back, trying to dislodge any know that had stuck to her. She glared at Elsa and smacked her playfully. "I keep telling you; that's not fair."

"And I keep telling _you_ ," Elsa shot back. "I wouldn't have to do it if you weren't so stubborn." She stood up from her chair and grabbed Anna's coat. "Now, go have a bath and I'll see you at dinner." Anna pouted, but Elsa pushed the coat into her arms. The redhead grumbled, but put it on.

"I still say that I'd be more comfortable under the desk," Anna groused.

"That's _exactly_ the problem," Elsa said. She pulled her sister into a gentle kiss, jumping when she felt a pinch on her butt. "Stop that," she chided half-heartedly. She shrieked as Anna redoubled her assault, chasing Elsa around the room and grabbing for her butt any time it was within reach. Elsa eventually whirled on her sister, grabbing her arms and pinning her against the wall.

"Mmm," Anna purred, "I thought we were done playing." She pressed herself forward, causing her coat to part.

"We are," Elsa growled. She took one last glance down at Anna's flushed and lucious skin, then let go of her sister's arms to close her riding coat. "Now go, or else we _won't_ get to spend time together tonight because I'll be stuck _here_."

Anna pouted, but acquiesced. "Fine," she grumbled. She gave Elsa one last kiss, then headed for the door. "See you later," she called back over her shoulder. "Love you."

"I love you, too," Elsa replied.

* * *

Elsa walked down the hall, humming to herself. A week had passed since her and Anna's near miss in her study. In the days since, they had ensured that they made time for each other, and Anna had kept from trying to initiate any more intimate scenarios in places where they might be interrupted.

She rounded a corner and spied Kai. "Good morning, Kai," she said. Her smile faded as she got closer and saw that his face was clouded. "Is something wrong?"

"No, Your Majesty," he replied, dipping into a brief bow. "However, there is a matter that I wished to discuss with you." Elsa waited patiently for him to continue, but he glanced down the hallway over her shoulder. "Might we adjourn to somewhere private? It's a… sensitive issue."

Elsa blinked. Kai had never requested privacy between them before, and she wasn't sure exactly how to feel about it. "Of course," she said. "We can talk in my study." She turned and headed back the way she had come. She slowed her pace just enough to walk side by side with Kai, and she peeked at him out of the corner of her eye. His mouth was drawn in a thin line and his eyes darted around the floor. Luckily, Elsa hadn't made it very far from her study before Kai found her, so they reached it quickly. Once inside, she sat down and waited for Kai to do the same, but he didn't.

"I don't know how to say this gently," Kai said, meeting the Queen's gaze. "so I must be blunt. Gerda and I know about your… relationship with Princess Anna."

Elsa sat stunned, unable to even breathe. Questions raced through her mind, but they overwhelmed her from a dozen different directions and left her with only one thought to latch on to. _Someone knows._ _ **They**_ _know._ She had wondered and thought about how she would react if someone discovered her and Anna's relationship, about what she would need to do to minimize any damage. But all of that planning vanished like fog under the morning sun now that Kai had confronted her. All she could do was quietly ask, "How?"

Kai finally sat down across from the Queen. "The day that you went to Trondheim, an important missive arrived from Corona," he said. "I planned to present it to you when you returned that evening, but another matter came up that required my attention. I came to find you once it was resolved, but…" He dropped his gaze to his hands. "You and the Princess were already… together."

Elsa buried her face in her hands. Not only had Kai found them out, but he had done so by catching them in bed. "I…" she paused, unsure of what she could even say. "I'm sorry." She took a deep breath and pushed her hands up through her hair. Worrying about the fact that Kai knew or how he found out wouldn't help. The best thing she could do was move forward. "So," she said. "What happens now?"

"We won't tell anyone," Kai said. "While we're… still processing the discovery of your relationship at the moment, the two of you are adults and more than capable of making your own decisions on the matter." He relaxed a bit, his discomfort giving way to a discussion he had clearly planned and practiced. "But even so, there are some issues that we _do_ need to discuss."

Elsa felt a wave of relief when Kai said that he would keep her and Anna's secret, but even that feeling couldn't drown out the one that reminded her of when her parents had lectured her as a child. "Of course," she replied.

Kai sat for a moment, seeming to search for the right words. "I'm sure you understand that a relationship of your and Anna's nature must be… discrete. In fact, I hesitated to even reveal that I knew because the two of you were clearly being extremely cautious outside of… a single unfortunate incident." He paused for a moment, pursing his lips. "However, there have been… rumors spreading through the city recently. Ones that suggest you have taken… an illicit lover."

Elsa felt as if the world had dropped out from under her. Mere minutes after recovering from learning that someone knew about her and Anna, now the _entire city_ was talking about rumors of a lover. Panic clawed at her, but she fought to keep calm. She focused on taking slow, deep breaths through her nose. As the initial wave of panic abated, she asked, "What kind of rumors? How specific are they?"

"Very vague," Kai replied. "They merely suggest the idea. In fact, any of them that get more specific suggest that this mystery lover is a man." Elsa sighed, but Kai pressed on. "While that is a relief, the fact that there are rumors at all is worrisome. Someone saw… something that led them to start the rumor. Thankfully, it was something small enough or vague enough that it didn't reveal the truth of the situation, but it was _something_."

Elsa bit her lip. She knew exactly who had seen what. _Alexi._ She cursed her libido once again. "Right," she said. "We'll need to be even more careful from here on out." She paused for a moment, mentally testing out a few ways breaking the news to Anna. "Is there anything else?"

Kai wrung his hands again, discomfort returning in full force. "May I… speak freely, Your Majesty?" he asked.

Elsa gave a short laugh, saying, "I believe we're well past the point of you needing to ask for my permission, Kai."

"I suppose so," he said, smiling half-heartedly. "Even so, please don't take this question poorly. How… serious is your relationship with the Princess?"

Elsa felt a flush burn through her neck and up into her face. "We… haven't gotten around to talking about that yet. We've just kind of been… playing it by ear." While she and Anna had both agreed that they wouldn't overthink their relationship just yet, admitting that out loud made it feel all the more childish.

"I see," Kai replied. "I can't really say that I blame you, but given the nature of your relationship and your positions as royalty, it is something that you need to consider." he chuckled as Elsa's brow furrowed in thought. "Not necessarily right this moment, but in the near future. There are questions of marriage and succession that will need to be answered, though it doesn't have to be tonight."

"Right," Elsa said, "but the sooner we figure all of that out, the better." She stood from her chair. "For now, though, I'm afraid that you'll have to excuse me. I believe that Anna is waiting for me for lunch."

"Of course," Kai said. He stood and bowed. "My apologies for keeping you."

"It's quite alright," Elsa replied. "I prefer you do it now rather than after the rumors have been confirmed." She headed out the door, but paused just before leaving. "Please be sure to let me know if the rumors become any more… concrete." Kai nodded, and Elsa left the room. As she made her way down to the dining room, she couldn't help but think about how her conversation with Kai had left her feeling. She had always assumed that someone discovering her and Anna would reignite the worry that she had harbored early in their relationship, but the opposite had happened. It was as if a weight had been lifted from her chest. The rumors spreading through the city were a harsh reminder that she and Anna needed to stay vigilant in their secrecy. But the fact that someone knew about their relationship— _Kai and Gerda, no less_ —and accepted it was more than she had ever dared to hope for.

Elsa pushed open the dining room to find Anna already helping herself to lunch. "Thanks for waiting," she said wryly.

Anna grinned around a piece of bread that was hanging from her mouth while she piled food onto her plate. She took it out and said, "You were late. You know the rules," before biting off a chunk.

"I suppose so," Elsa said as she sat down. She loaded her own plate with some food while she searched one last time for a subtle way to broach her talk with Kai. _I see why he was blunt._ She spent a few seconds idly pushing food around her plate before saying, "Kai told me about an interesting rumor he heard." Anna looked up at her curiously. "Rumor around the city has it that I've taken a secret lover."

Anna's eyes widened for the barest moment before she smirked. "Well, they're not wrong," she said.

Elsa rolled her eyes. "I suppose so," she replied, "but they're not a very good _secret_ lover if people _know about_ them."

"Fair enough," Anna nodded. "So I take it that means no more stints under your desk?" She ducked as a blueberry flew past her head. "Darn. I liked it under there." She smiled for a few seconds longer, then grew more serious. "We'll just have to be extra _extra_ cautious from now on. But at least the only time someone has begun to suspect anything was the one time we were being unbelievably reckless." She sat back and popped a bite of food into her mouth. "At least it's just vague rumors. It's not like anyone has actually _seen_ us."

"About that…" Elsa said, staring at her plate. She took a moment to try and calm herself, then said, "Kai and Gerda know about us." She glanced up to see Anna frozen in place. Elsa couldn't even tell if she was breathing. _It's strange to be on the other end of this discussion._ "He saw us one day when we were being a little too… affectionate."

"Affectionate?" Anna repeated. "Like kissing, or…"

Elsa hesitated. Part of her wanted to soften the blow and say that it was just a romantic kiss that gave them away, but she decided against it. "We were in bed," she said.

Anna covered her face and let out a groan. "Of course we were," she said. She took a deep breath, blew it out and echoed the same sentiment Elsa herself had expressed. "So what happens now?"

"He said that they'll keep our secret," Elsa replied. "But he emphasized that we need to be careful. There were a few other… issues that he suggested we need to think about. Marriage, succession… long term issues."

"Well, I suggested this whole thing because _you_ said it would be easiest if we just married each other," Anna said, shrugging. She speared a piece of fruit, then pointed it at her sister. "For the record, I still think it's the best idea."

Elsa's smile faded. She pushed her food around her plate for a moment. "It's not like I don't agree. It's just…"

"Hey," Anna said. "I know. It would be amazing, but we can't do it for a myriad of reasons." She reached over and laid her hand on top of Elsa's. "Though, Grand Pabbie did try and marry Kristoff and me when we went up there the first time. I bet he'd be willing to marry us in secret."

Elsa brought her free hand to her chest in faux shock. "Run away and get married under cover of darkness? With a rapscallion such as yourself? I could never."

Anna smirked and pulled Elsa's hand up to kiss the back of it. "We'll see about that."

Elsa chuckled to herself and squeezed her sister's hand before they went back to their food. A few moments of silence passed, but the rumors of her lover niggled at the back of her mind. _If only I could stop them. But I'd need to get married to do that._ She furrowed her brow, feeling like the beginnings of a plan were just out of her reach.

 _Or would I?_ she thought. _Maybe not married, but putting a name to my mysterious lover might help things blow over more quickly. They can't speculate about who it might be if we just tell them._ She frowned as a glaring issue sprouted up in her mind. _But he would have to be in on it._ A hand waved in front of her face, pulling her from her thoughts. She glanced up to see her sister watching her with a raised eyebrow.

"Everything okay over there?" Anna asked.

"Sorry, yes," Elsa said, "just—"

"Lost in thought?" Anna finished, smirking. "I figured. What are you so busy thinking about?"

"The rumors," Elsa replied. "I know that they're vague right now, but I worry that their vagueness might keep them relevant longer than we'd like. It sounds crazy, but spreading our own rumor of a false identity for this mystery lover might make the whole thing blow over more quickly."

Anna raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Since the rumors don't have any leads on who it could be, all people can do is speculate," Elsa said. " _But_ , that also means that every Prince, envoy, and visitor will be viewed through the lens of 'could they be the one?'" She paused for a moment. "But if we put a name to the rumors, people will obsess over it for a time, then just… get over it. They'll wonder how whoever it is managed to win my affections. Then… it'll fade away. Old ladies will gossip about it and talk about how this kind of thing would _never_ have happened in their day, but other than that, it will just be… a thing that is out there."

Anna blinked for a moment, turning the plan over in her mind. "That's… brilliant," she said.

Elsa ducked her head a bit as heat flooded into her cheeks. "There's no guarantee that it would work," she said. "And there's still the rather large issue of finding someone who would go along with the plan. It wouldn't look very good if my supposed lover starts denying our alleged affair."

"That _would_ put a damper on things," Anna replied. She sat back, staring through the table as she thought. "The obvious solution would be to create a fake person to name, but you're in such a position of power that _someone_ would try to track down this mystery lover and get curious when they couldn't find them. I suppose we could…" She drifted into silence for a moment, then smiled as inspiration struck. "Kristoff."

"What?" Elsa asked incredulously. "You can't be serious."

"Why not?" Anna replied. "We already know him well, so you two getting together wouldn't be completely out of the blue. He's a commoner, so people wouldn't be able to debate and obsess over how succession might work with a royal from another kingdom. And most importantly, we can trust him. Whoever we try to recruit for this is going to want to know why we need their help, and I don't think we'll be able to get out of telling them about us." She paused for a moment, then shrugged. "Now that Kai and Gerda know about us, I can't think of anyone else I'd trust more with knowing about us."

Elsa mulled over what Anna had said. Her sister had raised a number of good points _. Especially the last one._ "It does make sense," she said. "But solving that problem just leads to another. How do we go about asking him to help us?"

Anna raised an eyebrow. "We… just ask him?" she replied. "I mean, it will probably be _really_ awkward, but we're going to have to tell him at some point. Being upfront about it will probably make it as easy as possible."

"True," Elsa said. She glanced out the window where the setting sun painted the sky in swathes of orange and red. "Would it be too late to visit him today? We might as well get this over with as soon as possible."

"That's the spirit," Anna said, smirking. She sat back and thought to herself for a moment. "I think he said he would be getting back from a trip a few days ago, so he should be in town. We can swing by his place after we finish eating."

Elsa poked at the food on her plate for a bit. She knew that she should eat, but the prospect of sharing her and Anna's secret with yet another person had her nervous enough that she wasn't certain that she would keep it all down. She managed a few more bites before pushing her plate away. Her sister's plate was already clean, so she asked, "Should we go ahead and head out?"

* * *

Anna hummed to herself as she neared Kristoff's house. Night had fallen, but light spilling from the nearby buildings gave her just enough light to find her way through the city. A cloaked figure skirted along beside her, occasionally disappearing among the dark swathes of the street. "You realize that you look _more_ conspicuous because of that thing rather than _less_ , right?" she asked.

Elsa lowered the hood on her cloak, lips pursed. "Yes," she said curtly. "It seemed like a good idea at the time. I didn't realize it would get dark so quickly, and I didn't want to end up getting spotted sneaking out of the castle after nightfall."

"Wouldn't that be a good thing?" Anna replied. "We're planning to start a rumor that you and Kristoff are lovers. Wouldn't you being seen sneaking off to his place lend some extra credence to it?" Her brow furrowed for a moment. "Then again, us going there _together_ might raise a few extra questions…" She glanced around for a bit. "Actually, do you have any extra room in there?"

Elsa chuckled, but she couldn't shake the nerves causing her stomach to roil. They passed a butcher's shop, and the smell of the day's discarded offal washed over her. She brought a hand to her mouth, but it did little to block the smell. "Are you sure we're going the right way?" she asked. "I can't imagine that anyone would want to _live_ in this part of the city."

"I know," Anna replied. "But he insisted that it wouldn't be a problem. He said, and I quote, 'If I can handle sleeping next to Sven, I can handle anything.' Plus with how often he's out of the city, he doesn't have to deal with it all of the time." She stopped and peered at one of the buildings lining the street. "Here we are."

Elsa followed her sister up to the door. The house seemed almost abandoned except for the dim glow of light struggling to even reach the windows. Anna pounded on the door, and Elsa jumped a bit at the sudden sound. They waited, no sound except for a slight breeze. Anna raised her hand to knock again, but the door opened just before she could. Kristoff leaned out, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Anna?" He grumbled. "What's up?"

"Oh, sorry, Kris," Anna said hastily. "I didn't think you'd be asleep yet."

"It's fine," he said, stifling a yawn. "I fell asleep on accident after dinner. Long day. Had a few more things to do anyway." He belatedly noticed Elsa standing next to her sister and stood up a bit straighter. "Oh, Your Maj—err, Elsa. Is… is everything okay?"

"Yes, for now," Elsa said. "But there's an… issue that we were hoping to discuss with you."

"Uh, sure," Kristoff said. "Come on in." He threw the door open and headed back inside. Elsa and Anna followed, and the room slowly brightened as Kristoff coaxed the dying fireplace back to life. "Can I get you anything?" He glanced over to the kitchen area. "As long as 'anything' is 'water.'"

"No, thanks," Anna said. She made her way around a pile of discarded clothing and headed for the couch. Elsa followed, but was clearly nervous as she sat down. Anna laced her fingers through Elsa's and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "It'll be fine," she whispered. Elsa looked concerned for a moment, but nodded.

"So, how long have you two been together?"

Elsa sputtered and seemed to choke on air, eyes wide as she stared at Kristoff. Anna could only sit with her mouth hanging open. Kristoff burst out laughing, flopping down in a chair across from them. "I'm sorry," he said, "was that supposed to be a surprise?"

"I… you… wha…" Elsa stuttered. " _How?_ "

Kristoff shrugged. "Rumors about you taking a lover. The two of you showing up here after dark. _That_." He nodded down to where they were still holding hands. "All of that, combined with the fact that you two have been _really_ close since after the Coronation… it just made sense. I'll admit that I wasn't _one hundred_ percent sure, but that reaction made it absolutely worth it."

Elsa took a moment to recompose herself, then tried to recall any of the semblance of the plan she had crafted on the way to the house. "Yes, well, that's actually what we came to discuss with you. We've heard the rumors as well, and we would like to try and… encourage them along their course rather than let them simmer for too long." Her heart raced in her chest, but Anna's hand in her own kept her calm enough to keep going. "Namely, we want to plant rumors with a false identity for my… paramour."

Kristoff brought a hand to his chin, thinking the plan over. "But wouldn't putting a name out there just make people talk about it _more_?"

"For a bit, yes," Anna replied. "But it will stop people from being able to speculate about who it might be. They'll gossip about it for a while, then it'll just become a fact of life."

Kristoff considered the idea for a moment longer, then nodded. "Seems like a solid plan," he said. "The big question is where you're going to find someone willing to go along with it." Elsa and Anna looked at each other for a moment, then turned back to him. His smile slowly faded into a slack-jawed shock. " _Me?_ " he asked.

"Yes," Elsa said. "We have an established relationship after… the whole coronation incident. We have a few common interests that could foster a relationship. And…" She paused, not quite sure how to continue. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but you're… unremarkable. Trying to find someone more… befitting my status as Queen would introduce a host of unnecessary issues. But above all, we trust you. Anyone that we would ask to do this would obviously need to know about our relationship to know _why_ we would ask it of them." She shrugged. "Since you already know, that solves our biggest concern from the start."

Kristoff nodded. "It does make sense when you explain it like that," he said. He crossed his arms, staring at a spot on the floor while he stewed in thought. The longer he thought, his face grew more and more concerned. "Then again, I don't know. I mean, me and Elsa? Do you think people will buy that? Would they really believe that a handsome, strapping, extremely eligible bachelor like me would be tied down?"

Elsa and Anna were stunned silent for several long seconds before the latter burst out laughing. Elsa gave a more restrained chuckle, but smiled nonetheless. "Does that mean you'll help us?" she asked.

"As if you really needed to ask," Kristoff replied. "Do I really need to… _do_ anything?"

Anna shrugged. "Just get ready for lots of people to give you side glances and whisper behind your back."

Kristoff nodded. "So just an ordinary Tuesday," he said, before devolving into a round of laughter. Elsa and Anna could only stare at each other in confusion. Once he calmed down, Kristoff tried to explain. "Because that's the day…" He stopped and waved a hand. "You know what? Never mind. Bad joke that, looking back on it, there was no way you could have gotten. But yeah, I can handle some whispers and looks."

Elsa smiled. A weight loosened from around her chest that she hadn't realized had been squeezing her. "Thank you, Kristoff," she said, standing from the couch. "It's horribly unfair of us to ask this of you, and that you would agree to help us is more than I ever could have hoped for."

Anna hopped up off of the couch as well, bounding over to hug Kristoff and saying, "Thanks a million, Kris."

Kristoff returned the hug, but smirked. "Careful, Anna, you wouldn't want to make my new lover jealous," he said. Anna gave him one final squeeze, then headed back over to Elsa. "But seriously, you're making this sound almost dangerous. You don't have some jealous prince who's going to come looking for your 'mysterious lover,' do you?"

"Of course not," Elsa said before furrowing her brow. "Actually, Anna, do you remember the name of that one Danish Prince? The one who threatened to duel any man who so much as looked at me for too long?"

"Ah yes, Prince Harald," Anna said. "Or as he styled himself, 'Harald the Deadly.'" She leaned in and pretended to whisper. "He carried a glove lined with iron on the inside so that it would hurt more when he slapped someone with it to challenge them to a duel."

Kristoff rolled his eyes and gave a fake laugh. "Ha ha ha," he droned, though it turned into a yawn at the end.

"I do believe that's our cue," Elsa said. "Again, thank you so much for everything, Kristoff. We won't keep you any longer." Kristoff started to protest, but she waved it off. "You said that you still had things to take care of anyway. Besides, Anna and I _may_ have neglected to tell anyone we were leaving the castle, so we should get back before Kai has half of the city searching for us."

"Alright," Kristoff said, leading them back over to the door. "Just, uhh…" He rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know, let me know if you need me to actually _do_ anything, I guess." After one last round of 'thank you's, the girls headed back out into the night.

"Well, that went… well," Anna said once they had rounded the corner off of Kristoff's street.

"That might be putting it lightly," Elsa chuckled. She blew out a deep breath, grinning from ear to ear. "I ran through that in my head a million times, but I never imagined that it would have gone _that_ well." She glanced around, then grabbed Anna's hand and pulled her into an alley between two darkened shops.

" _Elsa_ ," Anna giggled. "What are you—" Her question got cut off as her sister pushed her up against the wall and pressed a heated kiss to her lips.

"I actually did tell Kai that we were leaving," Elsa murmured between kisses. "So, we have a bit more time before anyone would worry about where we are." She drew her cloak around Anna's shoulders, shielding them from the few meagre rays of light staggering in from the main road.

Anna grinned and pulled Elsa closer, breathing against her lips, "And I thought _I_ was the incorrigible one."

* * *

The castle doors groaned open, and a small contingent of men strode in. Kai awaited them just inside the entryway. "Duke Kemmler," he said, bowing, "I'm glad to see that you arrived safely."

The large man at the head of the contingent guffawed, the laugh blowing out the whiskers of his bristling mustache. "Come now, Kai," he said, "How many times do I have to tell you that you don't need all of the titles and formality?" He continued forward while the rest of his party stopped. Kai rose out of his bow and the two shared a brief hug.

"As always, my apologies, Henrich," Kai said. "I'm sorry, but the Queen isn't—"

"Aw, quit your blubbering, you old codger," Henrich said, cutting across the other man's words. "So we're early. It happens, and I don't expect Queen Elsa to shirk her other duties to accommodate _me_." He grinned and laid an arm across Kai's shoulders. "Besides, I believe your last letter mentioned a particularly rare bottle of port that you had recently acquired."

Kai smiled as well. "I thought that might have caught your attention," he said. He turned to a pair of nearby servants. "Brigitte, Erik, please show Duke Kemmler's men to their quarters. Now come, Henrich, I think I _might_ have a glass or two of that port left. But that letter _was_ from quite some time ago." He led the Duke off towards his personal chambers, and the two slipped into the easy banter of old friends. "So, how have things been over in Germany?"

"Well enough, I suppose," Henrich replied. "Always plenty of beer and bratwurst to go around, so I can't complain too much. How about you? I hear that the Queen has taken to ruling like a fish to water." He nudged Kai with an elbow. "Worried she might put you out of a job?"

Kai chuckled. "She has taken to her new duties admirably, but I'm not planning my retirement quite yet," he said as he led Henrich up the grand staircase. "And in truth, the Princess has been just as eager and adept at taking on new responsibilities. I've actually been rather impressed with how quickly she has grown into her role and matured from some of her… rambunctious days."

As if on cue, a commotion came barreling down the hallway on the floor below. Princess Anna raced out of the hall and ducked between two suits of armor. A moment later, Queen Elsa stalked out of the hallway, searching for the redhead. Anna snuck around the armor and slunk back down the hallway. Elsa glanced over her shoulder, then shouted after her sister. Anna broke into a run again, leaving Elsa to wave an arm and create an ice slick in her path. The Princess slipped on it and fell, leaving her to rub her arm and shoulder until Elsa helped her up. Anna sulked, but took her sister's hand. Elsa gave her a kiss on the forehead, then the pair headed back down the hall.

"You were saying about Princess Anna's maturity?" Henrich laughed. "But I suppose siblings will be siblings, no matter their position." He fell into step alongside Kai again. "But regardless, I hear they get along swimmingly most of the time." Kai nodded and Henrich tugged at his mustache. "Have either of them… had any luck on the suitor front?"

Kai stroked his chin, feigning thought. Just as Elsa had predicted, their manufactured rumor naming Kristoff as her secret lover had set the towns rumor mill on fire. But like a flash in a cooking pot, it was a blaze that died almost as quickly as it spawned, and a few days later only old spinsters could be heard discussing it amongst themselves. Since then, Elsa and Anna had kept their more affectionate activities well hidden. Or at the very least, moreso than they had. To outsiders, they appeared merely to be exceptionally close sisters, but it was nothing that couldn't be shrugged off.

"No, I'm afraid not," Kai said at length. "There was a Prince from… Iceland, I believe, that seemed promising. However, after spending a few days with him, she felt that his… romantic inclinations may have lain elsewhere."

"Ha!" Henrich barked. "She catch him eyeing the help? Maybe she and Anna should just marry each other and be done with it."

Kai nodded, smirking to himself. "Why, what an interesting suggestion," he said. "I believe I will need to inform the Queen of _your_ idea at once."

"Oh, yes, please do," Henrich said with an impish grin. Kai turned and headed back towards the staircase. "Wait, where are you going?" Henrich asked, his grin dropping like a stone. "Kai, I didn't mean… it—it was a joke."

"Your Majesty," Kai called. He chuckled as Henrich waddled more quickly after him. "Duke Kemmler just proposed the most _intriguing_ idea."


End file.
